


I'm Not My Programming

by deareststars



Series: NX300, Serial Number Not Found [3]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, But don't worry ;), Clueless Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Connor & Markus (Detroit: Become Human) Friendship, Connor (Detroit: Become Human) is Bad at Feelings, Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Lots of cussing obviously, M/M, North is asexual still, Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Pacifist Markus (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Android Revolution (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Canon, Simarkus is canon, Someone dies, Still no smut, Upgraded Connor | RK900 Being An Asshole, probably some teasing though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-22
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-06-14 07:52:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 25
Words: 60,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15384132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deareststars/pseuds/deareststars
Summary: You find yourself getting into deeper and deeper trouble, even after the android revolution is over. Markus and Jericho fight for equal rights for both androids and humans, but you're stuck on so much more than that, and some of it might even be more important.However, what matters most for now is finding out where and why Connor Lockhart was taken, and getting revenge on Gavin Reed for beating up your friends.Oh, you also can't forget the fact that you're not sure what you and Connor are, because last you checked, getting into a relationship after being at each other's throats only two days ago wasn't the most healthy thing to do.What the hell did you get yourself into?(basically contains the post-canon storyline that I've created, and after all that is said and done, there'll be several story arcs that will only be canon to this specific story)





	1. Hank's House

**November 11, 2038**

**10:23:10 A.M.**

**Lieutenant Hank Anderson's Home, Detroit**

* * *

Hank had insisted that you and Connor spend the night at his house instead of going back to the makeshift shelter that the Jericho inhabitants had created. You had protested at first, worrying about your friends and feeling guilty that you were able to find a more suitable shelter than they, but when Hank wants something, he gets it.

 

And you wouldn't say that being able to see Sumo again wasn't a big bonus.

 

"Sumo!" you cooed, rubbing the Saint Bernard's head as you walked in through the door after Hank and Connor. Sumo barked happily and started licking at your face, and you laughed, rubbing your hands viciously against his sides. He whined and started rolling around, pulling away with another whine as you got up. You resisted the urge to just sit down and pet him for the rest of the day, limiting yourself to rubbing the sides of his head again before brushing the dog hair off your face and clothes. You heard Hank snicker and shot him a glare. "Where's your dryer, Anderson? I need to wash these clothes, they have blue blood and dog hair all over them now."

 

Hank rose an eyebrow. "We on a last name basis now..." He trailed off and cursed as he realized that you didn't have a last name, and even if you did it's not like he would've known it. You laughed at him, gasping in mock offense as he flipped you off. Connor seemed slightly alarmed, looking between you and Hank in confusion. "Fuck you and your plastic self. Laundry room's through one of the doors in the living room, knock yourself out."

 

"I would hope that she didn't," Connor interjected, still looking alarmed at your interaction. You smiled at Connor's naivety, your reaction vastly different from Hank's, who groaned and face-palmed. He glared at you and walked over to the fridge, and you involuntarily cringed at the mess in the kitchen. To your surprise, instead of pulling out an alcoholic beverage like you'd expected, he pulled out a bottle of water. You were amused to see that Connor was surprised as well, staring at him. "Lieutenant, are you unwell? You didn't start ingesting alcohol the moment you walked in through the door."

 

Hank stared at him, then sighed heavily as he tipped back a fourth of the bottle. "Here I was, thinking that it would be me and the metal can teaming up on Connor," he muttered. "Turns out they're ganging up on me."

 

"Of course, Hank," you and Connor replied in unison. Hank groaned and slammed his head against the table. Sumo whined at the noise and walked to sit down in front of the couch, Connor went over to make sure that he was okay, and you peeked inside of all the rooms, finally finding the laundry room.

 

You stared down at your clothes, narrowing your eyes at both the sight of how dirty they were, but also at the fact that you didn't have any spare clothing. _Guess that's something to do later,_ you thought absentmindedly, searching around for another outfit to wear over your undergarments while your original clothes washed. You found one of Hank's gray shirts, surprisingly clean, stripped down, and put the shirt on. You were satisfied to see that it was practically a nightgown over you, sufficiently covering up your torso and half your thighs, and tossed your clothes into the washer.

 

As the clothes washed, you walked out of the room, rolling your eyes as Hank spat out his water all over the table. "Aw, Jesus, what the hell are you doing?" he demanded, getting up and grabbing a towel to put on the table. "That's one of my shirts, innit?"

 

"Yeah," you replied, waving it off. Hank gave you a deadpan stare, probably concerned at how nonchalant you were, then looked over at Connor.

 

"You okay with your girlfriend or whatever wearing one of my fucking shirts?" Connor gave him a confused stare, and Hank realized it was a lost cause. Hank shot him a deadpan stare as well, then turned to you. "Okay, just don't go doing any crazy shit so we can see your fucking panties, alright?"

 

You smirked and struck a pose. "Oh, you'd love to see that," you teased. Hank groaned and slammed his head against the table again; he apparently already knew that you were aware of how Connor had convinced him to investigate the homicide at the Eden Club. "You got anything to do around here? I'd much rather not have to sit around and look after your drunk ass."

 

"Hey, I've been clean for the past day, plastic bastard," he mumbled. You rolled your eyes and walked over to the table, turning the chair around and sitting down. You rested your arms over the back of the chair and closed your eyes, thinking about what you were going to do now that the revolution was done and over with. You wondered how Markus was doing and if his negotiations were going well, if everyone back at the makeshift shelter was doing okay...You could've thought for hours on end, worrying about everything and anything, but decided to focus on the most pressing matter at hand as you opened your eyes.

 

"When do you think we can start looking for Lena and Bryan's son?"

 

That immediately got their attention. Hank slowly set the water bottle down on the table, and the two of them glanced at the other before looking at you. "I'm not sure," Connor admitted. He crossed his arms and stared off into the distance, his LED spinning yellow. Just like before, you wondered why he hadn't taken the LED off yet, and wondered if he ever was going to. "The police department is going to be closed for another week at most so the city can get back under control, so whatever we do will have to be on our own accord."

 

Hank held his finger up and fished around in his coat pocket. "Actually..." He pulled out a key card and put it on the table in front of you. "Apparently since I'm a police lieutenant or whatever, Fowler gave me a key card to open up the shithole whenever it's closed. We can use that to get in and then go from there." He chuckled and glanced over at you. "Sorry to say this, sweetie, but the guy that beat up your friends probably ain't gonna be there, so you're out of luck for a while."

 

You nodded, too lost in thought to joke around with him, and laced your fingers together, staring at the table for a moment to collect your thoughts. "You think we can get going as soon as we get some new clothes?" you asked, gesturing between you and Connor. The latter gave you a surprised look, and you rose an eyebrow. "What, you think that you're going to be able to walk around in that suit all the time?"

 

Connor frowned. "I'm...not used to the idea of wearing more than one outfit," he admitted. "Aside from that, though, aren't all the shops closed in town?"

 

You stared at him. "Where do you think Markus and the others got their clothes?" you asked. "We can grab some from the closed shops." Connor's frown deepened and you sighed. "If Hank doesn't mind, we can leave some money in the register to pay."

 

Hank shrugged. "I mean, if it means that the police won't be after my ass, then I'm fine with that."

 

Connor sighed and nodded, then gave you a look that you vaguely registered as protectiveness. "However, we're going to wait until your clothes are finished drying. I refuse to let you go out in the cold like that."

 

Hank snickered, and you shot him a glare, already knowing what he was getting at. He stuck his tongue out at you childishly and winked at Connor, who already looked lost even without Hank saying anything. "You sure you ain't just being overprotective of your girlfriend, eh?"

 

The android blinked, then to your surprise, a faint baby blue blush rose to his cheeks. Hank seemed similarly surprised, but before either of you could start teasing him about it he got up from the table. He seemed uncharacteristically flustered and adjusted his tie. "I-I'm going to go send a message to one of the Jericho members to see how they're doing."

 

Hank let out a loud laugh as soon as Connor was out of earshot and downed some more of his water. "First time I've ever seen the asshole blush," he said, crossing his arms. "Didn't even know you androids could blush, honestly."

 

You shrugged. "I think it was just mainly so our reactions would look more humanlike, but I'm not sure what a police interrogation android would see to make the blush necessary," you admitted. He nodded, and the two of you fell into a comfortable silence before you turned the chair back around and rested your hands on the table. "Hank...are you doing alright from what happened at Cyberlife Tower?"

 

He stared at you, trying to remember what had happened, but his gaze darkened as he realized what you were talking about. He averted his gaze to the water bottle, and you figured that he was kind of wishing he had grabbed the whiskey instead. "Not gonna lie, after my son died my mind was pretty fucked up." He gestured over to the fridge, narrowing his eyes. "I started trying to kill myself slowly, doing Russian roulette and drinking more shit than I used to." He sighed and leaned back in his chair, kicking his feet up onto the table. "Somehow, though, Connor managed to make me see the good in whatever fucked up world we live in. To think, this entire time I'd been blaming those plastic bastards for taking Cole from me, and turns out one of the most pretentious ones out there would be the one to keep me alive."

 

You smiled softly and rested your head on your folded arms. "Yeah, he has that effect," you murmured.

 

Hank stared at you, but instead of making another shitty comment about you and Connor dating, he asked, "What did Mr. Speedo talk to you about after Connor and I left?"

 

You chuckled at his nickname for Kamski, but the smile slowly faded as instead of the guy's face appearing in your mind, Chloe's terrified expression appeared instead. You were...scared at seeing her look like that. The sight had only made your hatred of Kamski solidify, and you noticed that your hands were clenched into tight fists on the table. You relaxed them and sighed. "He confirmed what I'd figured out, about me transmitting a virus every time I interface with another android." You spread your dominant hand out and slowly drew back the synthetic skin, turning it palm up and flexing your fingers. "After that, he gave me the cure, but since I didn't trust him just saying it, he had me test it out on Chloe."

 

Hank's lip twitched upward in disgust as he put his chair back onto four legs. "Kamski's a sick bastard," he summed up. "I'm guessing since you're here right now that he was telling the truth instead of fucking you over?"

 

You nodded and twiddled with your fingers. You had hidden the whole Connor almost shooting Markus incident from everyone at Jericho, but looking at Hank and seeing how much he needed Connor, you couldn't quite hide it from him. So when he gave you a questioning look, you explained what had happened. His eyes narrowed the more and more you talked, and his grip tightened on the water bottle until he was crushing the plastic in his grip. "Cyberlife's a ton of sick bastards too," he muttered, seething with anger. "God, I wish I could run back in there and punch whoever the fuck decided doing all of that would be a good idea."

 

"Punch who?"

 

You turned, and as you opened your mouth to reply, you started laughing so hard that you fell out of your seat. Hank was staring at Connor, whether in awe or disgust you weren't sure, and muttered, "I liked it better when you were a fucking machine."

 

Connor chuckled and crossed his arms. He was wearing one of Hank's outfits, and surprisingly even though Hank almost towered over Connor, the outfit fit the android rather well. He noticed your staring and fixed the collar of his shirt, frowning. "What?" Connor asked. _Funny how he was only defensive when I was the one staring,_ you thought, amused that he would care so much about your opinion. "NX300 said that we needed some more clothes instead of our usual, so I decided that instead of stealing I would grab one of your outfits."

 

You stopped laughing for long enough to get up, walk over to the laundry room, and transfer the clothes in the washing machine to the dryer. You walked back out to see Connor was petting Sumo and Hank was gone, presumably in his room...at least, you hoped. "What's Hank doing?" you asked.

 

Connor looked up and smiled. "He's getting changed," he replied. You nodded and sat down next to him on the floor, rubbing Sumo's head as well. You smiled as he let out a grunt and nuzzled your leg. "Have you thought about what you're going to do over the course of the next month or so? I've found that planning helps me get my priorities in order, so it might work for you as well."

 

You hummed as you thought about what your personal priorities were. "Well, obviously number one on my list is going to be to find Lena and Bryan's son and get him back." Connor nodded, watching you as your hand paused on Sumo's head. A dark smile worked its way onto your face and you leaned back, supporting yourself with your arms as you looked at the blank TV. "I'm going to get revenge on Gavin and join the DPD...maybe not necessarily in that order."

 

Connor laughed. The two of you laid down on the floor, and he rested his hand on his hand, taking your hand in his. "Well, know that I'll be with you every step of the way, okay?" he asked, voice soft. Just like before, you felt such a warm feeling in your chest that your dark smile immediately turned lighter.

 

You put your other hand over his and studied his face, seeing all the small freckles that made his face unique yet perfect at the same time. "That sounds amazing," you replied.


	2. Gamma Hydroxybutryic Acid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After getting clothes for you and Connor, Hank decides to come along with you as you investigate what happened at the makeshift hospital that Lena and Bryan were being treated in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to change the way I separate thoughts transmitted between androids and regular thoughts; instead of it being italicized, it'll be in parenthesis and bolded.

**November 11, 2038**

**12:49:01 P.M.**

**Lieutenant Hank Anderson's House, Detroit**

* * *

When your clothes finally finished drying, you were still in the same position you had been in, with Connor by your side and your hands intertwined. Hank was still changing--either that or he had fallen down and knocked himself out cold, you weren't sure--so there was no one to glare at the two of you and yell at you to stop making heart eyes at each other. (Well, besides Sumo, but you would be more terrified than abashed if the dog started yelling at you instead.)

 

Connor almost looked disappointed when you let go of his hand, got up, and walked over to the laundry room. You saw him go over to pet Sumo instead, and as you saw the look of clear disappointment in his eyes, you laughed to yourself under your breath at how clingy he seemed. You pulled the clothes out of the dryer and tossed Hank's shirt aside. As you moved to pull the sweater over your head, your hand grazed against your stomach's bandages, and you paused in your tracks. You folded the sweater over your arm and ran a finger over them, trying to count up how many times you'd been shot.

 

_The first time was at Stratford Tower..._

 

_and I guess I technically got shot by Amanda in the Zen Garden..._

 

_then the last time, so far, was at Cyberlife Tower..._

 

You chuckled and brushed your hair out of your face, smiling dryly.  _Funny, I could've sworn I was shot more than that,_ you thought absentmindedly, pulling the sweater and jeans on. You ran a hand over the coat, surprised that you'd managed to keep both it and Bryan's beanie for so long with your tendency of getting into dangerous situations. You slipped the coat on, laced up your combat boots, and stuck the beanie over your head. Your quarter, knife, and scissors went back into your coat pocket, and you came back out feeling as though you had just walked into the abandoned house two years ago. You frowned.  _Jesus, it really has been that long since I washed this._

 

Connor looked up and gave you a faint smile, petting Sumo one last time before walking over to Hank's bedroom. You leaned against the wall and watched him. "Lieutenant?" he called, knocking on the door. You heard grumbling and cursing before the door swung open, and resisted a snicker at the fact that the two of them currently looked like they were matching. Hank shot you a glare and brushed some dust off his coat.

 

"You kids ready?" he asked, fixing his tie before turning to the two of you. Connor and you nodded, and for a brief moment you felt like this was what going shopping with your family was like...well, going shopping with your alcoholic, cynical dad-in-law and your whatever-the-hell Connor was. "Alright, let's go rob a store and shit." Connor rose an eyebrow and Hank rolled his eyes, not bothering to correct himself. He walked out the door, and you and Connor trailed behind him.

 

You were rather impressed at the fact that Hank still owned a self-driving car; when you questioned him about it, he just stared at you as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I'd much rather be behind the wheel than let some fuckin' AI or whatever be the boss," he responded. You figured that was a reasonable answer, and hopped into the back while Connor got in shotgun. "So, Robolady, you know where the hell we're supposed to go?"

 

You stared at him. "Do I look like a GPS?"

 

Hank snorted. "Eh, fair enough." He started up the car, tapped a few buttons on his radio, and soon enough the sound of heavy metal filled the car. You analyzed the music and found it to be a band called Knights of the Black Death. You looked out the window to hide a grin, remembering one of the memories that you had gained from Connor about him trying to get to know Hank in the police station. Hank looked at you through the rear-view window and narrowed his eyes, but you simply grinned at him. That was more than enough to get him to look back onto the road, and as he turned a corner you figured he was probably breaking about ten speeding laws.  _Funny that a cop is the one that speeds the most,_ you mused, watching the empty Detroit streets pass by.

 

He pulled up to an abandoned shopping store and parked on the side of the road. "Er, just go ahead and grab some clothes," he instructed the two of you, getting out of the car. You and Connor followed him in, and immediately you were taken aback by how many clothes there still were despite the fact that the owner was nowhere to be seen.

 

You wandered over to a random aisle and immediately found another sweater that suited you. You looked at it from a few different angles, then nodded in approval and draped it over your arm. You grabbed another one, then a pair of jeans and finally made your way to the counter.

 

Connor walked up as well, and you chuckled at seeing that he was still going along with his original style, which was both casual and formal at the same time. Two button-ups, a pair of khakis, a winter coat, and you presumed that Hank had forced him to grab some casual clothes, because there was a hoodie and a pair of jeans in there as well. Connor glanced over at your small pile and chuckled. "I feel bad for grabbing more clothes than you," he said. "Isn't it a stereotype for women to have more clothes than men?"

 

You shrugged. "I mean, I'm not exactly a stereotypical woman, am I?"

 

Connor smiled. "Fair point."

 

You went behind the counter and grabbed two bags for you and Connor to put your clothes in. While you did that, Hank dug around in his pocket and grabbed a couple $20's, then went behind the counter with you and put it inside of one of the drawers. "Don't want anyone stealing this poor guy's payment," he said. You nodded and tossed a bag over to Connor, then put yours inside the other one.

 

As the three of you made your way out of the store, you paused as Markus' voice filled your head.

 

**(I've just finished part of the negotiations with President Warren. We've been cleared to occupy an office building; if you can make it, I'll transfer the directions over to you.)**

 

You closed your eyes and opened them up again after the directions were implanted into your coding. Hank and Connor were giving you confused looks, probably worried that Cyberlife had managed to take control of you again somehow, and you smiled. "Markus said he just finished a few of the negotiations with the president," you reported. "He just gave me the directions to where Jericho will be reestablished, so I'm presuming that so far they're going well."

 

Connor sighed in relief, although you couldn't tell if it was because of what you said or the fact that you were still safe from Cyberlife. "That's good," he said. "I'm happy that we're making progress."

 

Hank nodded and clapped you on the back. "Well, Miss GPS, tell me where to go," he said with a smirk. You rolled your eyes, but traded spots with Connor when you got into the car. Hank started up the engine, and as the rumbling filled the uncharacteristically silent Detroit morning, you started to give him directions to the new location of Jericho. The closer you got to your destination, the more you realized that the roads looked familiar, and as you pulled up to the building you realized why. Just across the street was the makeshift hospital where Jeanine was taking care of Lena and Bryan.

 

Connor seemed to notice as well. He exchanged a look with you, and he looked as though he got what you were thinking about. He reached over and placed his hand on your arm, smiling reassuringly. "I'll tell Markus where you are," he said. You smiled back and got out of the car, carrying your small bag of clothes with you.

 

Hank stood in front of you on the sidewalk, crossing his arms. "Erm, since we're going to be taking the kid's kidnapping as our primary case when the DPD opens back up, you mind if I tag along?" he asked. "I want to question the android staying there, see if there's more than she let on."

 

You nodded, honestly glad that you weren't going in there alone. Something in your gut was telling you that there was going to be something more inside of the hospital than you imagined, and having Hank there made it slightly more bearable. "I don't mind," you replied. You looked over at Connor and squeezed his shoulder. "We'll be right across the street, but if something comes up then I'll relay it over to you, okay?"

 

"Alright," Connor agreed. You and Hank made your way over to the hospital while Connor went inside of the office building.

 

The moment you stepped inside, you narrowed your eyes. You pulled your knife out of your pocket, and Hank got the message. He pulled his gun out. "The lights aren't supposed to be dim like this, huh."

 

You shook your head. Hank motioned for you to get behind him and you complied, knowing that he had a better chance of hitting something with his gun than you had with your knife. He started walking forward slowly, and you heard him cock his gun and turn the safety off, keeping it out in front of him and aimed down the hallway.

 

The first few doors that you opened up weren't occupied, and judging by the film of dust you figured that they hadn't been for a long time now. However, the second door on the left seemed to have been left in a hurry, with papers all over the floor. "Someone got the memo a little too early," Hank observed. "Let's look around here for a moment, maybe we'll get a clue as to what the hell's going on."

 

You were all too eager to comply, even though every bone in your body wanted to sprint over to Lena and Bryan as fast as you could. You forced yourself to concentrate on the matter at hand and began a scan of the room.

 

You walked over to the desk and scanned it, finding something that didn't fit with what was on the desk. You picked up the baggie, finding a powdery white substance inside.

 

**SCANNING BAG**

**SYNCING PROGRESS**  
**SYNC DONE**  
**COLLECTING DATA**  
**PROCESSING DATA**

SUBSTANCE SIMILAR TO GAMMA HYDROXYBUTYRIC ACID (GHB) FOUND

 

You narrowed your eyes.  _GHB...where have I heard that before?_ You thought to yourself for a moment, running a quick search to try and find what it was, then felt your heart skip a beat as you found out. You stumbled back, and out of the corner of your eye you saw Hank give you a curious look.  _It's a sedative...a date-rape drug...and the only girl in the entire hospital is--_

 

You shoved the bag into your coat and took off at a run, heading down to the room where Lena was. Hank let out a startled yell and you heard him take off after you, but the only thing on your mind right now was Lena and what the drug could've possibly been used for.

 

However, when you got to the room, knife out and pointed, you saw Jeanine collapsed on the floor next to Lena's bed. The brunette was out cold as well, Bryan being the only one awake. He was trying to support himself against the nightstand, gasping as he pressed his hand against his ribs. "B-Bryan!" you stammered. He looked up at you, panic clear in his eyes, and accepted your help. You grabbed his hand and eased him into a sitting position on his bed. You saw him wince and presumed that he had irritated his broken ribs and arm when he had gotten up. "What happened to Jeanine and Lena?"

 

Bryan put a hand on your shoulder, his narrowed gray eyes now wide with alarm. "I...I don't know who it was," he said, his voice rushed, "but someone came into the room while we were sleeping, and I woke up to see Jeanine coming up behind them. When I turned on the lights, the android forced Jeanine to drink something, and immediately she was out cold on the floor. After that, I got up to keep him away from Lena, but he just pushed me aside and did the same thing to her as well." You were immediately concerned to see tears welling up in his eyes. "I...I just found out that someone kidnapped Connor, and n-now I was powerless to stop something from happening to my wife..."

 

You cupped his cheek, wiped away a few of the tears, and forced him to lay down. "Hey, it's okay, Bryan," you soothed him. Bryan still looked like he was on the verge of panicking, but he took in a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. "I have some friends who'll help me look into this, okay? We'll get Connor back, I promise." You left out the fact that they were from the DPD, not wanting to make Bryan get up and irritate his wounds anymore.

 

Bryan stared at you, presumably trying to collect his thoughts, and closed his eyes. Tears were still falling down his face, but he nodded off. You pulled the blankets out over him and walked over to Jeanine, pulling her up and onto a chair. You brushed her hair out of her face and knelt down in front of her, frowning. "I'm sorry," you whispered, holding her hand and probing her memories.

 

Before you could get far, a single line of red words filled your vision:

 

**ERROR: MEMORY FILE CORRUPTED**

 

You drew your hand back quickly as though you were burned. You stared down at your hand, furrowing your brow as you got back up and turned to see Hank standing right behind you. He was seething with anger, glaring at you. "What the hell was that?" Hank demanded. "I thought you fucking got hacked or something again and went running outta this goddamn place, then I come in here and see you holding hands with a passed out android and see those two out cold!" He gestured angrily over at the Lockharts, trying to catch his breath from railing on you.

 

You laced your fingers together in front of you, too worried about what you had found to respond to his anger. "Hank...I think I know what that baggie was for on the desk."

 

He cocked his head. His face was still slightly red, but he seemed to be calming down slightly, much to your relief. "What?" he asked.

 

You took a deep breath. "It's something similar to gamma hydroxybutryic acid," you said. "GHB."

 

Hank narrowed his eyes. "That's a date rape drug, isn't it?" Slowly, the puzzle pieces connected, and his eyes widened back up as he looked between Jeanine and Lena. "Holy shit. You don't think..."

 

You nodded slowly. "Whoever's in charge of all of this knows we're on their trail, so they wiped Jeanine and Lena's memories clean of the past few days." You cupped your face with your hand, staring at the floor. "It had Thirium in it as well, so I think it's supposed to be some kind of form of red ice that's for android consumption as well."

 

Hank crossed his arms and looked over at Bryan. "Fucking more red ice bullshit..." He looked desperate now, and you figured it was because he was worried about the case getting cold. "The guy over there still has his memories, right?" he asked.

 

You shook your head. "No, he was knocked out before he could see the kidnapping," you replied. Hank cursed and put his hands on his hips, but you held up your finger. "However...Jeanine had told me it was an HC android--like I said, the same one that had helped you in the hospital." You sighed as you realized what was going to have to happen next and pinched the bridge of your nose. You wished it could've ended up going any other way, but if they were getting desperate enough to wipe someone's memories, you knew that you had to speed things up and get Lil' Connor back safely. "We could look up his serial number in Cyberlife's database, but Cyberlife's practically shut down now that the android revolution is over. However..."

 

He stared at you, and he seemed to connect the pieces again, judging by the frustrated groan he let out. "You have got to be fucking with me," he said in disbelief. You shook your head, and he held a hand to his forehead, shaking his head. "You don't mean..."

 

You nodded. "Yeah. We're going to have to pay a visit to Mr. Elijah Kamski."


	3. City Surveillance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You find a tablet and find a recording that shakes you and Hank to the core. When you get back to Jericho, you and North eradicate the virus in Ralph and Rupert, and you and Connor head over to the DPD to find that you really do have to go back to Kamski to find the answer to all of this.

**November 11, 2038**

**2:38:31 P.M.**

**Makeshift Hospital, Detroit**

* * *

You and Hank made sure that Jeanine, Lena and Bryan were all okay and sleeping peacefully before checking in the other hospital rooms for clues you might've missed. All you could find was a bottle of blue blood and a bottle of water, both recently opened yet without any fingerprints on them, so you deduced that the man that had come into the room was an android. "Fucker must've put the drug inside of the drink," Hank said, observing the drinks when you showed them to him. "If it's anything like GHB, it's only really effective once it's dissolved."

 

You nodded, having come to the same conclusion. After poking around for a little while longer, you didn't find any other clues, and was about to clean up and get the hell out of there before you ran one final scan and found a weird rectangular shape in a bookcase. You were back in the office, and so finding something with that shape wasn't too unusual. However, it was odd because it was stuck in between the books, too thin to be another book and the corners too round for it to be a sheet of paper. You walked over to it and carefully drew the object out. When you touched it, you recognized it as a tablet.

 

"The hell is that for?" Hank had noticed it as well and walked over to you. You shrugged, wondering what a place like this would need with a hidden tablet, and played the recording, holding it up so the two of you could listen.

 

 _"If you've found this, we only assume you are an android as well. And if you're looking actively for us, we assume you're an NX300, the one that had helped the...humans."_ You exchanged a worried look with Hank, then returned back to the recording. Even though it was in Jeanine's office, you weren't sure who the voice belonged to. It was hidden under layers of distortion, presumably so someone like you wouldn't be able to identify it. _"Androids deserve to be so much more than the humans. We will not tell you where we are, but to make sure that you come to find us we have taken the child hostage. Should you fail to seek us out before a week's time, then...heh, the child might not be completely human anymore."_

 

After radio silence played from the audio, you almost dropped the tablet had Hank not caught it. He turned the recording off and placed it on the desk, scowling. "Bastards," he muttered. "I thought you said there was only one that had been accountable?"

 

The coin found its way back into your fingers, and you tossed it between your hands, anxiety threatening to take a hold again. "I thought so as well," you murmured. "I guess that the virus must be more than Kamski had said it was. I'm starting to think that maybe the mine had another side effect..." You gulped, grabbed the tablet, and pocketed it. "I'm going to have Kamski analyze this as well. Right now, what matters is getting back to the others so I can make sure to stop the spread before it's too late."

 

Hank nodded and put his hand on your back, having you go out in front of him. You quickly made your way out of the hospital, wanting to get as far away from it as possbile, and across the street, before he paused. "I don't think I'm going to be welcome in there just yet." He dug around in his pocket and handed a card to you; when you turned it over, you were surprised to see that it was the same keycard he had shown you and Connor just this morning. "When you're ready, come over to the station. It's a copy, but it'll work the same, just go behind the counter and swipe it over the reader. We'll look around some more to make sure that fucker is our last resort because I ain't going back there by choice, not after he had Connor hold a gun to some lady's forehead."

 

You put the card into your pocket and squeezed Hank's shoulder. "Thanks, Hank," you said. "Connor and I will be over as soon as possible, okay?"

 

He lazily saluted in means of farewell and walked back to his car. You watched him until he passed out of sight, then headed into the office building.

 

The first thing that you noticed was how many androids there were. About two hundred alone were on the base floor, laughing and talking to each other like they really were human. However, when one whispered something and they all looked up at you at the same time, you remembered that most of them hadn't even gotten the chance to study basic human reactions. You gave an uneasy smile and walked up to the first android you saw, who you identified as EM400 android, and asked, "Do you know where Markus and Connor are?"

 

The android smiled and nodded. He was slightly damaged and trembling, and you felt a pang of pity.  _He must've been one of the ones that had escaped the recycling camp after we won._  "Yes, I saw them on the top floor." He gestured behind him, and you followed it to see an elevator. "Take that up to the top floor. Markus and the others should be meeting in one of the rooms there."

 

You thanked him and headed over to the elevator. Among the crowd, you saw a couple of familiar faces--there were a few WR400 models, another PL500, as well as a PL600. Luckily, they seemed to be undergoing the limited cosmetic changes available to each of their models, so you wouldn't have to worry about confusing your friends for their counterparts.

 

The building had ten floors; you figured that you would be able to explore the rest once you had a moment of reprieve, so instead of going to the second floor you immediately went to the top. Pleasant elevator music played, and you tapped your thigh to the rhythm as you watched the numbers go by. Once it stopped, you stepped out and opened the door to the nearest room, hoping that you wouldn't have to look through all the rooms to find them.

 

When you peeked inside, Connor said your name in relief, walking over to you at a brisk pace and giving you a hug. You hugged back and smiled wearily at the others--Markus, Josh, Simon, and North--before pulling away from Connor. "I found something at the hospital," you immediately said, "but before I do that...Do you know where Ralph and Rupert are?"

 

They exchanged a look, and Josh piped up. "If you mean the blond with the scarred face and the brunet that always wears the cap...I'm pretty sure they're both out in the garden out back."

 

You smiled at North. "We haven't been on an adventure in a while," you said. "Mind tagging along?"

 

North looked over at the others for confirmation, and Markus shrugged. "I don't see why not." He nodded at you. "Go ahead. Once you finish with what you need to do, come back up here and we'll chat."

 

"Okay," you replied. North followed you as you walked out the door and went back down to the ground level. "Did Markus say what he and the president agreed on?"

 

North tapped her foot and nodded. "Yeah." She hummed to herself and cupped her chin with her hand, thinking. "President Warren has agreed to have anyone who mistreats an android to be treated the same way as though they had mistreated a human. So far, we have the rights to the First Amendment and the right to have a working, paying job, although only the androids who were built to protect humans, like you and Connor, are able to have any sort of weapon on them."

 

You chuckled. "That's a lot better than how we were before." North laughed as well and nodded, and the two of you fell into an easy silence as you stepped out of the elevator. North led you to the back of the building and opened the door to the garden. She let you go through first and followed after you.

 

You immediately saw the two of them tending to a bed of lily of the valleys. Ralph was watering the flowers and Rupert was scattering birdseed on the ground for a small trio of cuckoos. "Rupert, Ralph!" you called, gaining their attention. The two smiled and walked over to you, nodding respectfully to North, who nodded back. "I need to talk to the two of you. Do you have a moment to spare?"

 

Rupert nodded. "Yeah, we were just taking care of the garden, nothing too personal." Behind him, you saw the cuckoos pecking happily at the seeds, and couldn't help but smile at the sight.

 

"Okay..." You took a deep breath and summarized what you had found, about the virus that you had spread and the treatment that Kamski had shown you. "If I don't treat it, you guys might go off, possibly hurt the others around you. Would you be willing to let me get rid of the virus, just the way I told you?"

 

Ralph sighed. "Ralph doesn't like it whenever people touch him," he admitted. "It reminds him of when those nasty humans burned him. But...Ralph trusts his friend. He knows that she won't hurt him like they did."

 

"Yeah, same here," Rupert agreed. "Whatever you need to do."

 

You had them sit down and decided to work on Rupert first so Ralph would be able to watch. You had him take off his cap and pressed your fingertips to his lymph nodes. Ralph let out a noise of awe next to you, watching as his hair retracted, his plating came undone and his internal wiring showed. You pressed the base of his spine to turn off his pain receptors--you'd seen how much it had bothered Chloe when you had tried it on her, so you wanted to spare your friends--and put your hand on the central wire. Just like before, there was a sickle-shaped cell in the center, and you quickly eradicated it.

 

The moment you pulled away, Rupert gasped and flinched, but he didn't move until you had put his plating back into place and readjusted his pain sensors so they were back to normal. "That felt...weird," he said, clenching and unclenching his hands. "And you said that was so I didn't go off like a bomb on the others, huh."

 

"Yes," you said. "Can you scan and make sure that I properly got rid of it?"

 

Rupert complied, and when he got back up and smiled at you, you figured that you had been successful. "Okay, Ralph, your turn."

 

Since he had seen it first hand and knew that it was safe, the WR600 was far less tense than when you had talked about it. He still twitched, but they were calmer and allowed you to work quicker than before. You decided to leave everything else alone; even though you were an android yourself, you didn't know much about how to repair your own kind, so if something went wrong you'd have a mess on your hands. Luckily, everything went according to plan, and you were able to put his plating and pain sensors back into place without a hitch.

 

The moment you were done, Ralph immediately sprung back to his feet and ran a scan, sighing in relief. He turned around. "Ralph knew that his friend could do it," he said with a wide smile. "Ralph trusts his friend to the ends of the world!"

 

You laughed at the fact that he trusted you so readily and hugged the both of them tightly. "I have to get back to Markus," you said. "If you run across anyone else that might have the virus, relay it over to me and I'll be back as soon as I can, okay?"

 

"Okay," Rupert said, smiling as he stuck his cap back on over his head. "Take care of yourself. You too, North."

 

North chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Believe me, I do," she joked, waving as she turned on her heel and followed you back into the office building. When the door closed behind you, she let out a sigh and put her hands behind her head as she walked. "That was...interesting. You said that Kamski was the one that had told you how to do that?"

 

You nodded, sticking your hands into your pockets and feeling far more at ease now that you knew that at least two of your friends were safe, for now at least. "Yep," you replied, popping the 'p' as you headed into the elevator and pressed the button for the tenth floor. Once again, silence fell until the doors slid open and the two of you walked into the office room from before.

 

Simon and Josh were gone, presumably to take care of the wounded that were left, and North similarly excused herself, leaving you, Markus, and Connor all standing in a triangle. "Well, go ahead and tell us what happened," Markus prompted.

 

You nodded. As you explained what had happened to Lena, Bryan, and Jeanine, you saw Connor grow visibly more uncomfortable and Markus angrier. At the mention of the android knocking them out, Markus suddenly slammed his hand against the wall, making the two of you flinch. "Markus," you murmured, putting a hand on his shoulder. If his LED was still there, you were certain that it would've been spinning a bright red, both in anger and alarm.

 

"Sorry," he muttered, taking a deep breath to calm himself. "It's just...I can't believe that even after we won the war, androids and humans are still on the brink of destroying each other and themselves."

 

"Yeah," Connor agreed, crossing his arms. Unlike Markus, his LED was still on the side of his head, and right now it spun a slow yellow as he processed the information. "It doesn't make sense. Out of all the people, why would they attack humans that are helping them instead of harming them?'

 

You shrugged helplessly. "I don't know," you said, "but what really got my attention was what Hank and I had found in one of the rooms." You pulled the tablet out and handed it to Markus. He stared at it uncertainly, glanced over at you, and slid his finger across the screen to play it. Connor came to stand on his side of the tablet, and the two listened intently to the recording. This time, instead of differing in their reactions, they both had a look of surprise, anger, and even fear in their eyes. "Yeah..."

 

Markus handed the tablet back to you and pinched the bridge of his nose. "So to find the android that kidnapped the child, you have to go back to Kamski and ask him to scan for the android?" You nodded and he sighed. "I usually don't trust my gut instincts, but...I can't help but feel as though there's something darker than this that's happening."

 

Connor nodded. "I can feel it as well." He turned to you, his normally warm brown eyes now narrowed and cloudy. "Are you sure you want to go visit Kamski? I'm sure that if we search around some more, then we're bound to find something else."

 

You sighed. "Hank said the same thing." You pulled the keycard out of your pocket and held it between your fingers. "He wanted Connor and me to come back to the police station and look around some more to--in his words--'make sure that fucker is our last resort because I ain't going back there by choice.'"

 

Connor chuckled weakly. "For once, I agree with the Lieutenant." He looked over at Markus. "Can you support us as well? I have a feeling that with the influx of androids coming here, you're bound to find someone that knows something."

 

Markus nodded. "Don't worry, I'll keep an eye out, and I'll make sure the others do the same." He gave you a thin smile. "Good luck. I hope you'll find your friends' son."

 

"Thanks, we'll need it."

 

The three of you walked out of the room and separated--Markus went down the hall to talk to North, and you and Connor headed down to the ground floor. You noticed that androids were staring at you again, but after taking another glance you noticed that their gazes were trained on Connor. He seemed mostly unperturbed by their staring, but you saw the way the skin around his eyes tightened ever so slightly. He seemed to relax immensely the moment he got out of the office building, and to your surprise, he even brushed a single droplet of sweat that had gathered on the side of his head.

 

"Are you okay?" you asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. He stared at you for a moment and nodded. "I'm sure you know where the police station is, hmm?"

 

"That I do," he replied with a casual wink that made your Thirium pump skip a beat.  _Damn him and his charm,_ you thought to yourself, giving him a discreet glare as he looked around for a moment. He took your hand and led you down a set of roads, each with a varying amount of destruction and debris. You were in awe at how destroyed one of the roads were; you'd assumed that the humans had evacuated in a rather orderly fashion, but judging by the few fires that still blazed on the sidewalk and the swerved cars that were parked on the road with varying degrees of success, you now knew that was far from the case.

 

Connor finally stopped, and you looked up to see that you were in front of the station's entrance. He put his hand on the door, and you were rather surprised and amused to see that he had hacked it to open it. "Where'd your sense of morals go, Connor?" you teased, elbowing him as you walked into the lobby.

 

"Oh, I assure you they're still there," Connor replied as he walked up to the desk. "However, in the face of the DPD, they seem to shrink a little."

 

You snorted at his casual backhand to the police and went behind the desk like Hank had instructed you. Like he had said, there was a small glowing reader, and when you waved the keycard over it, the red  **DO NOT ENTER** sign flashed into a green checkmark on the side. "Nice," you said, following after Connor into the bullpen of the station. "Hank, you in here?"

 

You heard shuffling and saw Hank come out of the captain's office, carrying another keycard and a tablet. He had a smirk on his face. "Fowler's probably gonna have my head for this..." He showed you and Connor what was on the tablet, and your eyes widened as you saw  **CITY SURVEILLANCE** on the screen. "But eh, he shouldn't have fuckin' left his door unlocked."

 

"H-Hank..." Connor looked surprised. "You do know that if Captain Fowler sees us with this, we'll have a mere 37% of staying as police officers, correct?"

 

Hank waved his concern off and started walking down one of the hallways. He ushered the two of you in through a door, and you looked around to see that it was a row of computers inside a dimly lit room with screens on either side. "This here's the surveillance room, DPD uses it to look in through cameras if we want to find a fucker that committed a crime." He sat down in one of the chairs and swiped the keycard over the reader, then plugged in a wire to the tablet. The computer screen lit up with a surprisingly clear recording of the night of the 9th. "Now we just gotta scroll through here until we find the bastard we're looking for."

 

You and Connor pulled up chairs, and the three of you stared at the screen as it started to play. Hank scrolled through the footage until you held out a hand to stop him. He let the rest of the events unfold, and you saw his fists clench under the table as Bryan and Lena's assaulter came into view.  _"Reed_ was the motherfucker that did this?" He swore and rubbed his temples. "Damn, if I can just get this over to Fowler, then we can finally get the fucker off our backs."

 

He muttered a little more under his breath, still watching the screen. You winced in sympathy every time Gavin hit Bryan and Lena, but noticed something odd halfway through. "Wait...where's their son?"

 

Connor and Hank leaned in and saw that your observations were correct. Lil' Connor was nowhere to be seen around his parents, and Hank sat back in frustration. "The other metal can said that she saw another android come up and grab him, right?" He leaned forward and laced his hands together, resting his chin on them as he stared at the recording. Just like Jeanine had said, someone had come up to the Lockharts, but the figure walked away without anyone in his possession. "What the fuck...Did she lead us on?"

 

You crossed your arms, staring at the screen. Something really didn't add up. Jeanine had lied, sure, but if she was on the androids' side, then why had she helped Bryan and Lena? "Hank, can you go to any of the other cameras, see if maybe someone left with their son before this happened?"

 

Hank nodded and scrolled through some more footage, coming out to a view where you could still see Gavin beating up Lena and Bryan, but it had a better view of the things going on around them. You watched intently and told Hank to pause as a different figure came out of the shadows. "Bingo," you said, zooming in on the picture. This figure had a small item in its arms, and as it began walking in the opposite direction that the first one had, you saw the way it squirmed around. "That's definitely a kid."

 

Connor stared at the picture, presumably scanning it, but slumped back in defeat. "I can't get a good read on the physique, so I'm unable to identify what model it is," he said. You noticed how disappointed he sounded, and knew that this was probably one of the first times he was truly stumped. He put his hand on the screen, and you watched it glitch out for a moment before he retracted his hand. "I think Kamski really is going to be our last resort. We have the time and place of where it happened, but not the who, so we can only hope that he will be able to identify it."

 

"Shit," Hank muttered with a sigh. "And here I was, thinking we'd be able to go one case without dealing with that fucker." He sighed again and ran a hand down his face. "Alright...You two, go get in the car. I need to reload my gun."

 

You cocked your head. "What for?"

 

He gave you a smirk. "To intimidate the fucker into giving us what we want, what else?"


	4. Meeting Kamski

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Connor, and Hank get to Kamski's home, and upon arriving, you find that there's more to this kidnapping case than you originally thought.

**November 11, 2038**

**3:36:02 P.M.**

**Hank's Car, Detroit**

* * *

The drive to Kamski's home was a long one, even without the constant traffic that Detroit had to offer. A snowstorm had picked up while you, Hank, and Connor had been in the police station, and it only seemed to be getting worse as time went on. Hank was grumbling to himself, squinting to see through the windshield, and after almost turning the car over twice because of how slick the roads were, he slammed his hands on the wheel in obvious frustration and turned to the two of you. You were glad he didn't decide to down another two bottles of whiskey on the way here, otherwise this would be a whole hell of a lot harder. "Alright, one of you's got to drive," he griped. "I'm getting too fucking old to see in this damn weather, so either drive or we're going to get into a car wreck."

 

"I'll do it, Lieutenant," Connor volunteered. It made the most logical sense even without the fact that you didn't know how to drive; all they had to do was climb over the console, and soon enough Hank was sitting shotgun while Connor rested his hands on the steering wheel. 

 

He started up the car again, and as the motor rumbled he slowly pressed on the gas pedal, easing the car back onto the road and starting the drive again. You found yourself relaxing more with Connor behind the wheel--probably because he wasn't going 60 mph on a 40 mph road--and soon closed your eyes, listening to the sound of your breathing and the howling of the wind outside. Snow, while graceful in appearance, made thudding noises as it hit the sides of your car, but strangely enough even that was soothing, and you decided to go into low-power mode for the remainder of the drive.

 

Either Hank and Connor didn't know that you still had full control over your senses or they didn't care, because soon enough the conversation was turned to you. "So, erm, what's the deal between you and her?" Hank asked Connor. You heard the android shift in his seat, and after a quick scan, you saw that a majority of the heat in his body was rising to his face. A soft smile lifted your lips and you shifted so your scan could get a better view of Connor.

 

"I...I'm not sure quite yet." He shifted some more, and from the thermal radiation, you could see his hands clenching over the steering wheel tightly. "She had said that she wanted to take things slow, so I don't know if we're simply companions or something...more."

 

Hank groaned. Somehow he was more frustrated than you or Connor at the whole situation, which was surprising. "Oh, fuck, really? God, you two are making lovey-dovey eyes at each other and you ain't even dating yet...any other geezer my age would be having an aneurysm."

 

"Oh?" You could practically  _hear_ the smirk in Connor's voice. "And what do you mean by that? Do you, by any chance...approve of us?"

 

He scoffed, and even though you couldn't see him from this angle, you knew Hank well enough to know that he  _probably_ crossing his arms like a child. "N-No, of course not!" A quick pause, and he seemed to have forgotten that both your and Connor's hearing was able to pick up frequencies at 150 decibels, so his whisper of "Although you wouldn't be too shabby" didn't go unnoticed.

 

Now you were certain that Connor had the biggest shit-eating grin on his face. "Lieutenant, did you forget that I can still hear you?"

 

Hank stiffened. "Oh, fuck off with your super hearing, dipshit." He grumbled some more under his breath, and for your own sake, you decided to ignore the expletives that he was muttering. You limited your low-power mode, only setting it to specific parts of your body, and began to mess around with your quarter quietly, although this time instead of doing tricks, you simply focused on how it felt under your fingers. The coolness of the quarter soothed you, and soon you felt your mind ease, which was imperative if you were to get out of Kamski's home with the information you required.

 

The car pulled to a stop, and you opened your eyes to see that the snow outside had drastically cleared up. A sigh of relief escaped your lips, and Connor turned in his seat to give you a small smile. "We're here," he said, opening up the door and getting out.

 

Hank and you did the same, and you resisted a snicker as you heard him let out a "Fuck, it's cold!" as he stepped out. He heard your failed attempt and shot you a glare. "Oh, shut the fuck up, metal can."

 

You mocked him speaking immaturely and followed the both of them up the ramp. You ran a hand over the railing and observed the outside of the building, impressed that someone was able to afford something like this.  _Then again, it's Kamski we're talking about,_ you admitted.

 

The door opened, and you heard a lady say, "Oh, Lieutenant Anderson, Connor! What can I do for you today?"

 

Connor gestured for you to come forward, and as you stepped to face her, both your eyes and hers widened. You should've realized that Chloe would've been here; after all, she  _was_ Kamski's android above all else. "Hi, Chloe," you finally said. "Is Elijah home? We need to speak with him about a recent kidnapping case."

 

Chloe blinked and cocked her head, LED flashing yellow before returning back to blue. "Of course, he's right this way." She kept the door open, and you exchanged a curious look with Hank and Connor before following her inside.

 

You immediately noticed the big portrait of Elijah Kamski himself on the wall and resisted a roll of your eyes.  _Self-absorbed prick,_ you thought, looking around as Chloe stepped into a room directly in front of you. You saw a portrait on the wall and scanned it from where you were standing, narrowing your eyes as you recognized the person on the portrait. _Amanda Stern, Kamski's mentor...but why was she in the Zen Garden? And if she's Kamski's mentor, then why..._ You trailed off and chuckled under your breath.  _Nevermind, it makes sense that they're both bloodthirsty and sadistic._

 

Chloe finally stepped back out and gave the three of you a pleasant smile. "Elijah is right through here," she said, stepping out of the way and gesturing inside.

 

The first thing you noticed wasn't the blood red pool or the two Chloes casually sitting in the pool and talking to each other; rather, your mind was enthralled by the view outside. You figured this was the reason why he made sure he could afford a place like this; not only was he out of the way and practically impossible for anyone to find--in fact, you were impressed that Hank managed to get the address of this guy--he had a beautiful view to boot.

 

The man of the hour turned around as Chloe approached him. His lips twitched up into a smile, and you didn't miss the way that Connor came out to stand slightly in front of you. "Ah, welcome back," he said, striding forward and taking a seat in one of the two chairs in front of the window. "May I inquire as to why you're here?"

 

"Listen, we didn't come here to make small talk," Hank griped, crossing his arms. "All we want is some information, then we'll be out of here ASAP, Your Man-Bun Highness."

 

Kamski's eye twitched for a brief moment in irritation, but his expression smoothed back over and he stood up. "Of course, of course." He walked towards you, and out of habit you measured up his physique to yours.  _If all else fails I could just knee him in the balls,_ you thought idly, feeling a smile twitch onto your lips at your thoughts. "Well? What is it that you need?"

 

Connor cleared his throat and explained the situation, and you were glad that he didn't let out anymore information than necessary. The last thing you wanted was for Kamski of all people to have leverage on you. "We couldn't identify the model number of the android, so we decided to come here and see if you would be able to," Connor concluded. "If you would allow me to transfer the image to Chloe..."

 

Kamski nodded and gestured for Chloe to take his place in front of Connor. The pretty android complied obediently, but as Connor gently took her hand in his, you couldn't miss the unmistakable flash of fear in her eyes.  _She must've been more shaken up by me transferring the virus over to her than I thought,_ you realized, watching as both of their LEDs circled yellow for a few moments before Chloe pulled away.  _Poor girl. Kamski doesn't deserve her._

 

"Well?" Hank asked, trying to keep his mannerisms civil despite the obvious hatred he held towards Kamski. "And don't go trying to make either of them hold a gun to the girl's head, otherwise it'll be me on the trigger and you on the other end."

 

"Oh, no, of course not," Kamski replied. Chloe bowed slightly and walked off to a different room; you presumed that she was to compare the model to an extensive database, or find the serial number hidden on the android and go from there. "That was specifically for that situation, this one is different."

 

"Uh huh," Hank muttered. "Sure."

 

On that note, Kamski turned towards you, and you felt yourself flinch involuntarily as he took a step closer to you. "You know, if you want to get into the Detroit Police, I have more than a few upgrades that might help you," he said.

 

You stiffened. "How did you know?"

 

"Oh, I have my ways."

 

As he took another step, you felt gratuity flood you as Connor slid in front of you protectively. "I'm sorry Kamski, but I think that's close enough," Connor said, his tone icy.

 

Kamski chuckled. "I still am amazed at the fact that the infamous deviant hunter-turned-deviant fell for the one that made him that way," he admitted, crossing his arms. The both of you shot him a glare, and he either didn't notice it or didn't bother to point it out as he turned to the room that Chloe had just emerged from. However, the mood immediately turned tense as you noticed the way Chloe's normally amiable face was stricken with alarm and fear, her LED circling red. "Chloe? What happened?"

 

She didn't speak until she got closer, and even then she didn't answer Kamski's question directly. She took your hand, but it seemed to be more to comfort her than to interface. "I...I..." She started to tremble, and you held her shoulders, keeping her from falling to the ground. "I found out who the android was..."

 

Hank looked surprised, even worried. "Well, that's good, isn't it?" he asked, glancing between you and Connor. "If she knows who it is, then we'll have a better chance of tracking them down, right?"

 

Chloe shook her head quickly. "No, you don't understand." She took a deep breath and stared over at Connor, and you started to get a sinking feeling in your gut. Your instincts had rarely failed you before, but this time you wanted them to, oh so very badly.

 

Connor hadn't caught on yet, and at the sight of Chloe's stare he seemed to flinch. "W-What?" he asked, his voice and body trembling ever so slightly. Kamski was gazing at Chloe, and it was a mixture of concern and realization. You figured that he had connected the puzzle pieces as well, so it would only be a matter of time before Hank and Connor figured it out. "What happened? Who is it, Chloe?"

 

Chloe let go of your hand and began wringing her hands together nervously. "It was an RK800 android," she finally said. "But the problem is that Connor was supposed to be the last one created...I don't know how or why this one's out and about, but when I saw the android's serial number, I knew immediately that it was a Connor model."

 

Even without the explanation, it was like dropping a nuke right there in the conversation. You felt the blood drain from your face, looking over to see that Connor was having a similar reaction. Kamski's face was still stoic as ever, but you could see the faintest glimmer of shock, and Hank...well, he was as verbal as ever.

 

"It doesn't make sense," Connor said, cupping his chin with his hand, although you didn't miss the way that he was shaking. "The one I had fought in the Cyberlife Tower should've been the last one, and after I went deviant I'm sure that Cyberlife destroyed all the other models. So how..."

 

Chloe shrugged helplessly. You pulled the tablet out of your pocket and handed it to Chloe. "Would you be able to analyze the recording?" you asked.

 

She nodded and drew back the synthetic skin on her hand, holding it over the surface. The four of you watched her as her LED began spinning yellow again, until finally she drew away and handed the tablet back, her brow furrowed. "It doesn't make any sense," she repeated, looking frustrated. "I'm certain that the voice was a Connor model, the wavelengths compared to our Connor right here were the exact same, but something felt off about it...like there was another voice overlapping it."

 

"Well, yeah," Hank said in a 'no duh' voice. "They didn't want us tracking them that easily, so it makes a lot of sense that they'd use special effects on the recording."

 

"It's not that," Chloe replied. "It was almost like...someone was controlling the RK800 from the inside. Someone besides the RK800 is in control, and whoever that person is, it's bad news for us."


	5. Their Upgrades

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Connor accept the offer of upgrades from Kamski, and as Chloe helps the two of you, Hank interrogates Kamski.

**November 11, 2038**

**4:03:01 P.M.**

**Kamski's House, Detroit**

* * *

"Kamski...you said that you had some upgrades for me that would help the investigation?"

 

Despite Hank and Connor's protests when Kamski had first told you he had upgrades for you, you still thought that the chances of finding the other RK800--and by that extent, Lil' Connor--would increase drastically should his upgrades prove useful. Kamski seemed pleased that you asked him and put his hand on your shoulder. "Of course," he said. "There are a few I wanted to go over with you, and if Connor wishes then he may have them as well--"

 

"Absolutely fucking not," Hank immediately interjected. "Look, er,  _Mr. Kamski,_ you and the blondie have been really helpful so far, but I don't trust you nearly as far as I can throw you, and that's saying something." He put his hand out in front of Connor, grabbed you and pulled you back, and stood protectively in front of the two of you. "So you can take your offer and stick them--"

 

"We'll do it."

 

Hank groaned and face-palmed at Connor's assertion. Kamski chuckled and motioned for the two of you to come to follow him, and after a hard glare sent in your direction, Hank reluctantly stepped aside. He drew his gun and kept it at his side, although he didn't aim it at Kamski just yet. "I'll be following you in there," he said, "and the moment anything goes wrong, there'll be a fucking lead ball driven through your head, got it?"

 

He nodded, and Connor grabbed your hand before walking after Kamski. Chloe walked next to you and smiled softly at you, and you managed a smile back at the pretty android as Kamski opened up a door and ushered the four of you inside. "Wow," you said, rather amazed at how many machines there were in his home. "I thought you said that you didn't work for Cyberlife?"

 

"I don't," Kamski agreed. "However, before I left, I managed to convince them to allow me to take a few machines back. They're useful for repairing the Chloe models without having to travel all the way back to the city."

 

You nodded slowly and watched him carefully as he tapped away at a small screen in front of him. A holographic projection appeared, and you tightened your grip on Connor's hand as a base model of an NX300 appeared on the screen. Kamski tapped a little more, and a few pinpoints appeared on a couple of the model's joints--namely the legs, stomach, and fingertips.

 

"Here's the upgrades that we've come up with." He tapped on the stomach and turned to you. "I've noticed that a lot of your injuries have occurred around the torso, so to negate that I've been meaning to apply a metal plating that will help any injuries prove to be less fatal." He zoomed in on the fingers, and you noticed that there was a sort of abrasion on the tips. "The Connor model was built with the ability to analyze items by putting them into his mouth, but we figured that for you, something like that wouldn't be...practical."

 

"Fucking glad," Hank harrumphed, glaring at Connor. "I hate it when this ass licks things on the crime scene, it's disgusting." Connor smiled apologetically, and Kamski cleared his throat to bring your attention back to the 'presentation.'

 

"Anyways...you'll be able to activate a special scanning mode where if you touch something, you'll be able to see a more in-depth analysis of the item. For example, touching blue blood will allow you to know the model and physical description of the android, touching a bottle of an unknown substance will allow you to analyze the chemical composition, and so on." He moved onto the legs and turned back to you. "Your legs seem to be mostly injured as well, so we're going to add the same metal plating around your legs, as well as increase the speed with which you'll be able to run and jump."

 

You nodded, currently enjoying the upgrades that Kamski was explaining, and smirked at Connor. "Maybe we'll be able to have a sparring match after all this is finished and see who really is on top," you said. Connor chuckled and rolled his eyes.

 

"If that's what you want, then it's a promise." You smiled and watched as Kamski pulled up another model, this one of an RK800. Different areas were highlighted--this time the mouth area, arms, and eyes were prominent in the model.

 

"So for Connor, we're going to be focusing on the analysis and strength capabilities." He gestured towards the face. "We'll be improving the depth of his mouth analysis, and his scanning will be able to pick anything that might be crucial to the investigation." He tapped on the arms, and you frowned as the muscle mass increased by 5%. Connor noticed and smirked, elbowing you; you responded by pushing him gently. "We'll improve his strength, allowing him to apprehend larger criminals. Although Chloe had identified the android as an RK800, since we had no idea it had even been created, we're expecting it to have more than a few phsyical advantages on Connor, so improving him anyway we can while keeping him looking the same is a must."

 

Hank crossed his arms and looked over at you and Connor. "Are you sure you want to go through with this?" he asked. "Like I said, Kamski's not the most trustworthy guy, and I don't wanna have to leave Detroit because I murdered a guy if something goes wrong."

 

"Absolutely," Connor affirmed. "The better our physical and analytical abilities, the better chance we have of finding Lena and Bryan's son and bringing him back safely."

 

Hank sighed. "If you're sure..." He turned to Kamski. "Can Chloe handle the upgrades? I wanted to speak with you about some stuff, question you about the case a little to see if you know anything."

 

"Of course." Kamski and Chloe made eye contact, and you saw the LED on the side of her head spin a brief shade of yellow before she nodded. "We can do this outside while the upgrades happen. Is an hour enough?"

 

"Plenty." Hank stared at you and Connor. "The moment anything happens--"

 

"Right," you replied. "Now go on outside. Connor and I will be fine, Hank."

 

Hank nodded slowly and turned to Kamski, who followed him outside. As the door closed behind them, Chloe turned to you and Connor with a smile. "Go over to those machines," she said, pointing to two platforms with mechanical arms on the sides. You figured the arms were to suspend you in the standard android assembly position, upright with your arms out at a 90-degree angle from your body. "We'll start the upgrades as soon as you're ready." As you and Connor made your way over to the machines that she had indicated, Chloe began to turn the arms on. "I'll be turning off your systems so you won't feel the upgrades. Is there anything you'd like to know before we start?"

 

You and Connor looked over at each other. "No, I think we're okay," you said with a smile. Connor gave your hand one final squeeze before he got onto the rightmost machine. You climbed onto the one next to him and turned your synthetic skin off, then stripped down and tossed your clothes into a neat pile next to you. You heard Connor do the same next to you, and you stuck your arms out on either side of you.

 

"Are you ready?"

 

You nodded, and Chloe tapped a few of the buttons on the tablet. One of the arms jolted into the base of your spine, another at the start of it, and the others held you in place. You felt your systems shut down one by one and closed your eyes, hoping and praying that by the time you opened them back up, everything would be alright.

* * *

"Alright, Mr. Kamski..." Hank sat down on one of the two chairs while Elijah took the other. He pulled out a separate tablet from his coat pocket and put it on a table next to him, using it to record the questioning/interrogation. "Are you able to track down the android with the serial number?"

 

"Yes, I believe so," Elijah replied. He pulled out a tablet of his own and tapped in the serial number that the android was under, then frowned. "Odd..."

 

"What is it?"

 

Elijah showed Hank the screen, and the two men watched in vague surprise as the screen began to glitch out. He sighed and tapped at a few buttons, closing the tablet and placing it on the table next to Hank's. "It seems like the android managed to negate any and all methods of tracking, so we won't be able to do it unless we get a good read on his position and follow him the old fashioned way."

 

"Shit," Hank said with a sigh, running a hand down his face. "Alright. Do you know any places where someone like the android would go if they were trying to hide something?"

 

Elijah tapped his chin, staring off into the distance. "Let me think...there are a few that some of the Chloes had reported to me that seemed like prime hiding spots. There's an abandoned warehouse, a section of Ferndale that's hidden behind a chainlink fence, and another one of the abandoned freighters, much like Jericho. Out of all of those, I'd assume that the warehouse is your best bet. When you leave, I'll have Chloe transmit the location over to one of the other two."

 

"Good." Hank crossed his legs and tried to think of any other questions that would be pertinent to the investigation, then pulled out the bag of residue that you had given to him before you left for Kamski's. "Do you have any idea what this is? We figured it was something similar to GHB, a date-rape drug to sedate a victim and wipe their memories of the past few days, but we couldn't figure out anything else."

 

He took the bag and held it up to the light, narrowing his eyes. "I'd assume that it's something for both android and human consumption," he said, glancing over at Hank before returning his gaze to the baggie. "So it must contain Thirium, which means that it's probably a derivative of red ice, just replacing the color and the chemicals used. Other than that, I've never run across anything like this in my life. It must've been developed recently."

 

"Damn, I was hoping you'd know something else," Hank said in disappointment, taking the baggie back and sticking it into his pocket. "Is there anything else we should know about the guy we're tracking down?"

 

Elijah's gaze darkened. "All I can tell you is that you're going to have to watch out," he said, lacing his fingers together in front of him. "This android doesn't seem like a typical RK800. The model was built to investigate and stop deviancy, to always follow orders no matter what, so if it's being driven to take the child of an android helper then I would only assume that someone got into its programming and changed its main objectives. Either someone from the outside...or someone from within."

 

Hank nodded, then sighed. "I'm guessing there's some more bad news judging by the look on your face," he said, not wanting to hear anything else that would damage the course of the investigation; however, the furrowed brow and the way his eyes were turning a stormy shade of blue didn't say much for that train of thought.

 

"There is," Elijah said. "I'm not sure if you know, but models of the same type are able to transfer their memories, their very being, to another. Much like how the NX300 is able to force an interface, the two RK800s would be able to force a switch between bodies."

 

Hank groaned. "You have got to be kidding me," he said, running another hand down his face.  _God, I really wish I'd brought some goddamn whiskey with me,_ he thought. "So you're saying that if Connor and the other metal can get too close to each other, the bastard can switch bodies with Connor?"

 

"In a simplified version, yes," Elijah agreed. "I didn't say it in there because I didn't want to alarm those two--"

 

"Kinda fucking impossible with what we're doing right now," Hank interjected, glaring at him.

 

"--but the arm upgrades will make it to where the RK800 won't be able to force a body switch," he said, pushing past Hank's interruption. "However, it's not definitive. If Connor gets injured and his systems weaken, then the RK800 will easily be able to do it. So whatever you do,  _don't_   _let them get near each other._ I'm sure the android has figured out they're able to do a body switch, but if Connor gets hurt, then it won't matter that we have protection against that."

 

Hank nodded grimly. "Got it." He paused and sighed. "God, I wish I didn't have to say this to _you_ of all people, but...thanks. You're being really helpful."

 

Elijah smirked. "It's my pleasure, Lieutenant Anderson," he replied. He was quickly cut off by Hank sticking his finger in his face. "Excuse me?"

 

"Just because you're being helpful right now, don't think that I won't put the bullet through your forehead if we get back in there and the two of them are fucking disassembled or broken," Hank threatened. "Because the gun's loaded, and God help me if I don't kill you for hurting them." 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These chapters are probably going to be kind of short because I'm running into writer's block until we get to another part of the story...heh. Sorry about that!


	6. The Abandoned Warehouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Hank and Connor make your way back to Markus and the others, and after devising a game plan, you head to the warehouse that Chloe had told Connor about, only to find more than a couple surprises waiting for you there.

**November 11, 2038**

**5:04:23 P.M.**

**Kamski's House, Detroit**

* * *

When you heard Chloe's voice, you were almost reluctant to open your eyes, fearing that maybe when you looked around you would find that Kamski really had been hiding an ulterior motive and you and Connor would be disassembled. However, a sigh of relief escaped you when you found that you were laying down, and sat up to see that Connor was sitting right next to you. He gave you a small smile, silently asking if you were okay, and you smiled in return.

 

"Good, you're awake. Are you able to test out your upgrades?" Kamski asked. "We can save your durability upgrades for later, I want to make sure that your analysis upgrades went through correctly."

 

You nodded and activated the analysis, then put your hand on the couch underneath you.

 

**SCANNING COUCH**

****  
**SYNCING PROGRESS**   
**SYNC DONE**   
**COLLECTING DATA**   
**PROCESSING DATA**

 

SERIE_50W THREE SEATER  
MADE OUT OF POLYURETHANE, FINISHED WITH POLYESTER FIBRE, UPHOLSTERED WITH LEATHER

 

You reported your findings to Kamski, who nodded in approval. "Good, good." He nodded over to Connor. "For some reason, it took us longer to start your systems back up, so Connor was able to test out his analysis abilities as well."

 

"Okay." You glanced at each of them in turn, noticing how they were all tense. "What happened?"

 

Kamski and Hank exchanged a look, then Hank sighed. "Apparently the bastard's not able to be tracked down, so Chloe gave Connor the address of some of the places we'll be able to check out. We have to make sure that Connor doesn't get near his twin either, because the arm upgrades were to lessen the chances of a body switch happening--"

 

"--and if I get injured, then the chances of me being able to resist it go down drastically," Connor finished. "I've already relayed the locations to Markus and the others. We'll be meeting up with them at the office building, then we'll be splitting up and searching for the Lockharts' son and, by that extent, the other RK800."

 

You nodded. "Okay, sounds good." You looked over at Chloe and Kamski. "If there isn't anything else that you have for us, I assume that we'll be on our way."

 

He gave you a thin smile, and even though he'd proven to be nothing but helpful so far, the expression sent chills down your spine. God, you  _really_ needed to get over that sometime soon. "Yes, I presume so," he agreed. "Chloe will contact the two of you if we find anything else that will be pertinent to your investigation."

 

"Sounds like a plan," Hank said, groaning as he got up. "Alright, c'mon you two, let's get back to the others."

 

You waved at Kamski and Chloe, interlaced your hand with Connor's, and made your way out of the house and after Hank. You saw the police lieutenant glance down at your hands and roll his eyes, but he said nothing else as he grabbed his keys out of his pocket and unlocked the car. "The stupid blizzard's still going on, so Connor, you gotta drive again." Hank looked irritated at the fact that he couldn't see in the weather, but you figured it was safer anyway, even without the blizzard going on.

 

"Right." Connor grabbed the keys, and Hank climbed in shotgun while you hopped into the back again. He started up the car and pulled out of the driveway, the engine making some concerning noises as he started to drive back to the office building.

 

This time, instead of filling the silence with idle conversation, Hank tapped at the audio player again and heavy metal started to play. You rested your head against the window and stared at the scenery as it flitted by, this time too tense to try and conserve your energy.

 

You stayed in that position until the three of you got back to the office building, and as you stepped out you were greeted by Simon, Markus, Josh, and North all standing out in front of the doors. Markus and North both had pistols that they were checking, and as you, Hank, and Connor approached them, Markus looked up and gave you a thin smile. "Glad you could make it," he said, pocketing the pistol. "We've agreed to split up into pairs of two. Hank'll go with you and Connor, but since you guys are checking the location that seems the most obvious, he'll be standing outside and keeping watch while you two go in."

 

"And I absolutely fucking hate it," Hank griped with a sigh. "Hopefully you two won't start sucking each other's faces off while you're alone."

 

"We'll  _try_ not to," you teased. "Where's everyone going?"

 

"Josh and I will be checking out the abandoned freighter next to the old Jericho," North explained. "Simon and Markus are checking out the Ferndale train station, and you, Hank, and Connor are going to be going to the abandoned warehouse. The moment any of us sees anything, we'll be relaying it through Chloe, who will transmit it to all of us."

 

You nodded and crossed your arms. "Who's going to be in charge of the rest of the androids while we're gone?"

 

Simon chuckled. "We have a couple of people taking care of them," he replied. "Traci, Eden, and Rupert are going to be watching over them, and if anything goes wrong then they'll be telling either Markus or me since we're going to be the ones closest to the building."

 

"Sounds like a plan." You sighed and rubbed your hands together. "Remember, if any of us finds the RK800, apprehend it but don't kill it unless you absolutely have to, okay? We need to get answers as to why all of this is happening, and a deactivated android is going to be harder to get information from."

 

Everyone nodded, and Hank put his hands behind his head. "We'll meet back up here at...ten thirty, gives us about five and a half hours to search and find the bastards."

 

"Got it." Markus nodded at everyone. "Good luck."

 

The seven of you split up into your groups. Connor got back into the car, and this time you sat in the passenger's seat and Hank sat in the back. Connor didn't have a gun on him, having discarded it after almost assassinating Markus after the war was won, so for now, it would be up to you and Hank to provide any sort of offensive backup. "Do you have the location for the warehouse?" you asked.

 

Connor nodded and closed his eyes. His LED spun yellow for a few seconds before he opened his eyes back up and started to drive south of the office building. As he drove down the streets, you figured that the warehouse was going to be near the docks, and your assumptions were proven correct as you started to hear the gentle crashing of the Detroit River before you even saw it. In the distance you could still see the smoke rising from Jericho's exploded hull; as you watched, out of the corner of your eye you could see Connor's hands tense up on the wheel.  _Poor guy, he must still feel guilty about that,_ you thought, frowning for a moment before flinching as the car pulled to a stop.

 

You got out of the car and looked around, seeing a partially burnt warehouse sitting near the docks. "Is this our place?" you asked.

 

Connor nodded. "It was a storage facility built back in the 1900's," he explained. "During the Great Depression, a group of people raided the warehouse and accidentally set off a flame in their escape. The warehouse was put out before it could be burnt down completely, but as a result, it was deemed unsafe for human use and any workers that were still there abandoned it. It's a candidate, maybe the best one so far."

 

Hank sighed. "Well, you guys can go inside and explore." He pulled out his revolver and made sure it was loaded, then started walking towards the warehouse. You walked after him, Connor practically on your heels.

 

He stopped and stood guard outside of the main entrance. You pulled out your knife and held it in front of you, nodding at Connor as you opened the door and started to walk inside.

 

The warehouse was practically falling apart, most of the supports simple pieces of wood and metal, but it still seemed structurally sound. You just hoped that it would stay standing after being up for almost 130 years, although so far your luck had proven that you were quite out of it.

 

The bottom floor had no walls at all, so it was easy for you and Connor to navigate. It would've been easier for the two of you to split up, but you had already promised yourself that you wouldn't let Connor out of your sight, especially since you were the only one that had a weapon between the two of you. So you made irritatingly slow progress, although knowing that Connor would be safer was more of a relief than anything else.

 

You poked around, not finding anything until Connor looked around as well. He looked underneath an abandoned pile of wood and scraped something off the ground, and you quickly looked away as he held the blue blood up to his mouth. "Aw, Connor, I could just touch it and have an analysis!" you whined. He chuckled and stood back up, wiping the blue blood off on a wooden plank.

 

"The blue blood is from an HC300 android," he reported. "Black hair and brown eyes, reported missing on November 9 at 10:12 P.M." He nodded. "I think this is our guy."

 

You nodded and started to look around some more, finding another splatter of blue blood leading to the stairs. "He headed up the stairs," you called over to Connor. "Get behind me. I have a feeling he's still around here."

 

Connor complied and the two of you started to walk up the stairs. You kept a firm grip on your knife as you glanced between the top floor and the stairs, trying to follow the faint trail of blue blood that was still on the floor. When you got to the top of the stairs, there was a pool of it. "He must've stood here and tried to look for somewhere to hide," Connor said, coming out to stand on the other side of you. "There's more blue blood leading to the center of the room..."

 

He trailed off as the two of you approached it, and found that the blood had disappeared. "Shit," you cursed. "He must've stopped the bleeding with another piece of clothing. However...I have a feeling he's still here."

 

"Yeah," Connor agreed. "Let's look around here some more."

 

You nodded and the two of you began the same process as you did downstairs, slowly poking around and making sure you didn't miss anything. Upon doing a scan of the room, you saw a small strand of black hair on a chair.

 

**SCANNING HAIR**

******SYNCING PROGRESS**   
**SYNC DONE**   
**COLLECTING DATA**   
**PROCESSING DATA**

HC300 ANDROID HAIR STRAND  
BLACK HAIRED MODEL, RECENTLY TORN OFF

 

"He was here recently," you said, stepping away from the chair and looking around. Connor stepped back from a crate and to your surprise, he shoved it aside. Before you could ask him why he did it, you approached the crate and saw a hole leading down into another section of the warehouse that wasn't accessible from the bottom floor. "The android was probably here for a while."

 

"Right." Connor sat down at the edge of the hole, and after bracing himself he dropped down. You followed shortly in his footsteps, seeing that the area was dark and smelled of mold. Connor grabbed a penlight from his pocket and clicked it on, taking your hand gently in his to keep you close to him.

 

The room was small and had no other exit than the hole the two of you dropped down from. You narrowed your eyes, looking around and finding no other hidden exits. "He must've been playing us," you muttered. "He set a fake trail and had us follow him down here, which means that there's something he wants us to find."

 

Connor knelt down on the floor and ran a scan, frowning as he came back up and dusted the wood shreddings off his pants. "I can't find anything out of the ordinary..."

 

You looked around as well and finally found a weird scratching in the wall. "Connor, come take a look at this."

 

He shined the penlight on it, and the two of you read the numbers on the wall.

 

**11102038  
CIDRGCEG**

 

"What?" you muttered to yourself, crossing your arms. "Hmm..."

 

Connor was staring at it as well, and not for the first time you were disheartened to see that Connor was perplexed as well. "It must mean something..." He trailed off and narrowed his eyes. "Wait a minute."

 

"Did you figure something out?" you asked, watching as he pulled out a tablet and started to type. You looked over his shoulder. "What are you doing?"

 

"It must be a code," he replied. "Have you heard of date shift ciphers?"

 

You nodded, then it slowly dawned on you. "Oh, that makes perfect sense!" You crossed your arms. "So the date is November 10, 2038. That was significant because it marked the day that we won the revolution, but if someone is controlling an RK...800..." You felt the blood drain from your face and held your head in your hands. "Oh my God, I think I know who's controlling the RK800."

 

Connor tapped a little more on the tablet, then looked up at you. "Who?"

 

"It's--"

 

Before you could say anything, you heard Hank let out a startled yell. The two of you looked at each other in surprise, then grabbed one of the crates that had been abandoned and moved it to be under the hole. Connor linked his hands together and boosted you up off the crate and through the hole, and you lifted Connor up before getting back onto your feet and running outside.

 

Hank was on the ground, gritting his teeth together as he held his foot. "Jesus Christ, I think we found our guy!" he snapped, gesturing towards the running android. "Go after him, that's an order! I'll be fine, fucking hurts!"

 

You exchanged a worried look with Connor. Hank groaned and threw his revolver at you. You fumbled it, then finally started to run after the android, handing the revolver to Connor. "Come on, let's go!" you shouted at Connor. "Contact the others, let them know we found the HC300!"

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent way too long on the code part of this, haha! I won't say anything, but I can assure you that the solution is going to be important to the story.


	7. Mission Started

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Harry damages himself to keep you from getting any answers out of him, you bring him back to the office building and reactivate him to find that your suspicions were correct. You go back into the lobby of the building and find that Lena and Bryan are determined to join you and Connor.

**November 11, 2038**

**8:39:01 P.M.**

**Delray, Detroit**

* * *

You were thankful that Kamski had decided to upgrade your legs as well; although the HC model was well ahead of you by now, the small added boost helped you keep up with him, even gain on him the smallest bit. Connor was practically on your heels despite the upgrades, but you could see the android--you were certain it was Harry now--slowly losing ground.

 

He ducked into an alleyway, and you turned into it to see him climbing up using the balconies of the apartment complexes. You gritted your teeth together, held the knife in your mouth, took a running start, and boosted off the wall. You scrambled up the railing and continued the process, chasing Harry up the sides of the buildings until you came out onto a flat rooftop.

 

You saw him hopping from roof to roof and saw that the last building on the block had no others around it.  **(Connor, go to the last building on the block, we can get him from there,)** you instructed him as you started to follow in Harry's steps. Connor gave you a quick affirmation and you heard a pair of footsteps echoing yours down below.

 

Harry skidded to a stop at the edge of the last building. You stopped in front of him as well and held your hands out in front of you. "Harry, calm down," you tried to soothe him. "All we want to do is question you and we'll let you free, okay?"

 

**STRESS LEVELS 97%--DANGER OF SELF-DESTRUCTION IMMINENT**

 

"N-No, you can't do that!" Harry spluttered. Even from here you could see the artificial irises in his eyes dilating from fear. "She, she'll kill me if I tell you anything!"

 

"Harry, who is she?" you asked, taking a single step towards him. "If you tell us, I promise that we won't let her hurt you."

 

**STRESS LEVELS 92%--DANGER OF SELF-DESTRUCTION IMMINENT**

 

He shook his head frantically, and you felt yourself flinch as he took another step backwards. The heel of his right foot was practically hanging off the roof now; all you could do was hope that if he did fall, Connor was there to do something. "You don't understand," he said, shaking. "She...She can control us, I saw her do it to another android after he failed a mission that she assigned him!"

 

You took a small step forward again, keeping your hands palm-up and away from your pockets. "We can protect you," you promised. "We can help you to be safe from her. She can't get to you unless she touches you, so if we can keep you away from her you won't be able to get hurt." Another step, stopping a mere five feet away from him. "And if you tell us, it's a mere variable that she'll hurt you. If you don't, then we'll be forced to take more drastic measures. Harry, you only have one choice if you want to stay alive."

 

**STRESS LEVELS 86%--OPTIMAL STRESS LEVELS REACHED**

 

"A-Are you sure?" Harry asked. He was still shaking, although his movements had become less erratic and he was moving half an inch away from the rooftop edge. "Are you sure that she won't hurt me if I tell you?"

 

"I promise," you said, nodding. You took a final step towards him, now three-and-a-half feet in front of him. "As long as you answer our questions truthfully, we'll try our best to protect you, okay?"

 

**STRESS LEVELS 69%--DANGER OF SELF-DESTRUCTION LOWERED**

 

"O-Okay," he murmured, stepping fully away from the edge. You sighed in relief and pressed two fingers to your temple.  **(I've convinced him to give us our answers, have the others meet us back at the office building.)**

 

 **(Got it.)** Connor's answer was immediate, and you weren't sure if it was because your consciousnesses were linked or something else, but you could tell that he was smiling.  **(Good job.)**

 

You led Harry over to the rooftop exit and walked down the stairs. Luckily, the building was still abandoned because of the evacuation, so running into humans wasn't something to be concerned about. However, after getting out of the stairwell, you had Harry go in front of you and kept a grip on your knife, just in case he tried to pull a fast one and hurt you.

 

No such thing happened, much to your relief, and the two of your came out of the entrance. Connor was waiting there with Hank's car and supporting the lieutenant. He was grumbling to himself and shot Harry a vicious glare. "Fucking bastard, why'd you shoot me in the foot?" he demanded.

 

You frowned and turned to Harry, about to question him right then and there before he pulled out his gun, held it under his chin, and fired off a shot. The three of you stepped back in shock as he crumpled to the ground. "Oh my God," you murmured, crouching down and inspecting him. The bullet went straight through his head, going through his chin and out the top. "I think we might be able to reactivate him and probe his memory if we get back to the office building."

 

Connor nodded and grabbed Harry, supporting him and putting him into the back of the car. You took up the seat next to him, not wanting to have Hank sit next to him, and the lieutenant gave you a grateful nod as he stumbled into the passenger seat. Connor started up the car and began the drive back to the office building.

 

By the time you got there, the sun was setting and the streetlights were coming on by themselves. You crossed your arms and leaned against the window, watching the office building come up next to you. Your eyes wandered over to the makeshift hospital where Lena, Bryan, and Jeanine were all still recovering, and you let out a sigh. You wanted to go back and check on them, just in case something happened, but you also wanted to help further the investigation. So, when you opened the door, instead of going across the street you grabbed the Thirium-soaked android and heaved him out of the truck.

 

Connor relieved you from the burden and the three of you made it into the office building. Hank still wasn't sure if the androids would like him inside of their safe haven from humans, but you and Connor managed to convince him that they would do a better job of taking care of his foot than he could on his own. He responded with a lazy middle finger directed to the two of you, but he seemed convinced and walked with slightly more confidence into the building.

 

Someone called out your and Connor's names, and you looked back towards the entrance to see the entire crew walking towards you. "Did you guys..." Josh trailed off and pursed his lips as he saw the dead android Connor was supporting. "Ah."

 

"Yeah," you agreed. "Luckily, I scanned the biocomponent we're going to need to reactivate him, and it's a pretty common model that we'll be able to find somewhere around here."

 

"You guys are in luck," Simon said. He reached behind him and unslung a backpack from his body that you hadn't even noticed at first. "While Markus and I were looking around the section that Connor had told us about, we found a small abandoned crate with biocomponents and blue blood. The government must've raided a Cyberlife store to grab the androids and left it out there."

 

You smiled in gratuity and sifted through the bag, pulling out the biocomponent that you needed. "Okay, now we need somewhere to secure him so when we reactivate him he won't lash out."

 

"I got you," North said with a smirk. "There's some rope and a chair on the second floor. You could probably secure him with that."

 

You nodded and started walking to the elevator. Markus and Connor came with you while Simon helped Hank to the makeshift medic area that they had set up. Connor was grimacing as Harry's weight slouched against him, and you chuckled as Markus started teasing him about it. You tuned out their friendly bickering as the elevator doors closed and it went up to the second floor.

 

When the doors opened back up, you saw the chair that North had indicated. It was sat up against a wall, but the rope was a little farther away from it than you'd anticipated. You wouldn't say that you weren't glad about that, though; if the rope had been any closer, then it would've meant that the Jericho inhabitants had used it before.

 

Connor propped the android up against the chair and stepped back, allowing you to separate the rope and use it to tie Harry's hands behind his back and his legs to the chair. It was rather flimsy, but you doubted that him blowing his brains out would leave him with any want to break free. "Here it goes," you said, plugging the biocomponent into Harry's head and stepping back as he flinched and gasped.

 

"W-Where am I?" You noticed that his eyes were black with the irises a bright shade of blue, which lead you to believe that his optical units had been damaged or severed from his central wiring. "What's going on? Why can't I see?"

 

Connor glanced between you and Markus, then stepped forward. You pulled Markus back a safe distance; from Connor's memories, you knew that he could get rough with the suspect while in interrogation mode, so you didn't want to be too close to him while he was in it. "Hello," he said in a soft voice, trying to play to the android's terror. "I just want to ask you a few questions, okay?"

 

"W-Will you repair me if I give you the answers?" You felt a surge of guilt at how pitiful Harry sounded, then calmed yourself back down as you remembered that to find Lil' Connor, you couldn't let anything else get in the way.

 

"Yes, I promise," Connor said in the same voice. "Just answer truthfully, okay?" Harry gave a small nod and Connor bent to one knee in front of him. "Can you tell me where the RK800 is?"

 

"The RK800..." Harry shivered and twitched in his bonds. "The last time I saw him, he was in Ferndale, near the abandoned docks. I'm not sure where his exact location is, but I know he was somewhere there."

 

You sighed. Looked like you were going to have to decode the date shift cypher regardless.

 

"Okay," Connor said, trying to mask the disappointment in his voice. "Do you know if there was anyone controlling the RK800?"

 

This time, instead of a small shiver, Harry was trembling. "Y-Yes," he whispered. "There is definitely someone controlling him...every time he spoke, it was a female voice layered over his original one, and his expressions were like he was trying to be human, but they ended up looking cold instead. He was able to take control of some of the other androids that were with us and force them to destroy themselves."

 

You cursed under your breath.  _Looks like I was right about that as well,_ you thought grimly. You wanted the 'puppeteer' so to speak to be anyone else, but it seemed like your luck had run out a long time ago, just like you feared.

 

Connor stared at Harry, and the android started to twitch again. Before he could beg for his life, the brunette reached for the biocomponent and wrenched it out of him. Harry slumped, lifeless, and Connor turned to you and Markus. His LED was spinning yellow, and he looked at Markus before staring at you. "I heard you curse after the HC android confirmed our suspicions," Connor noted. "I also remember you saying that you had figured out who the person or software controlling the RK800 was. Could you tell me who?"

 

You clenched the hem of your coat. "I...I'm almost certain it's Amanda."

 

Markus' brow furrowed in confusion while Connor took a step back in shock, his LED flickering to red now. "Who's Amanda?" he asked, crossing his arms.

 

You gave him a brief explanation, and while he processed that information you turned back to Connor. "It's the only logical explanation," you said. "Amanda was able to seize control of your programming for a short while, not to mention that she's in all of the RK800's mind palaces. Also, that was what November 11, 2038, meant in the code--that was the date that we managed to break out of her control as well. Unless Cyberlife managed to develop another software that's able to seize control of an android, she's the only one that it could be."

 

Connor let out a slow breath through his nose and closed his eyes. "That must be why Kamski had warned me to not get near the RK800," he murmured, cupping his chin. "If I got near it, not only would we switch bodies, but Amanda would be back in my body as well and it would be like I was just a machine all over again."

 

Markus nodded slowly. "That must be her ulterior motive," he said. "She must want to get revenge on the two of you for foiling Cyberlife's plans, although I still don't understand why he would take the Lockharts' child."

 

You sighed. "The recording had said that it was so we had no choice but to come after them, so I guess that's a plausible explanation." Connor nodded, and you cupped your chin. "Now the only thing we have to do is decode the cypher, then hopefully we'll have the location of the RK800."

 

"I managed to decode it while you were trying to calm down the HC300." Connor pulled out the tablet from before and held it out in front of him to show you and Markus.  **DJERICHO** was on it in bold letters, and you could see how he'd managed to do it--by going a specific number of letters backwards from the original bunch of letters. "'D Jericho--I can only assume that would mean the deck of Jericho."

 

Markus stared at the tablet with narrowed eyes. "That would be an ideal hideout," he admitted. "A human was rarely able to find it in the first place, and now that the explosion happened, none of us would even think about trying to go back and salvage anything from it."

 

You tried for a smile and crossed your arms. "Well, we have a location and we have a puppeteer," you said. "I think we're about ready to go after them."

 

Connor nodded and patted your shoulder. "Let's go ahead and go down to report what we found to the others."

 

The three of you left Harry there--you'd be able to come back and salvage parts from him later--and headed back to the elevator. When you got downstairs, though, you were shocked to see Bryan, Jeanine, and Lena standing at the entrance. Ralph and Simon were talking with Jeanine while the humans shifted under the glare of North. "Bryan, Lena, Jeanine!" you said in disbelief. "Why are you guys here?"

 

Lena clenched her fists in front of her, as though thinking that you were about to fight her. "Hank came over to tell us that you were close to finding where Connor was." The three of you looked over at Hank, who threw his hands up in a defensive posture. You pinched the bridge of your nose and took in a deep breath, nodding for her to continue. "We want to help you."

 

"Absolutely not," you said before anyone had the chance to argue. "Both of you are still injured, and there's no way I'll be able to keep track of the two of you as well as myself if what I think we're dealing with is true. You have to stay here and be safe."

 

Bryan crossed his arms, narrowed gray eyes glaring at you even more than the first time that you had met them. "And let you and Connor track down the android that kidnapped our kid?" He shook his head. "Besides, our wounds have already healed. Jeanine's a competent healer, in case you weren't aware, and so she managed to mix together a serum that healed up our wounds."

 

You sighed again and moved your hand from your nose to the side of your head. "Connor, Markus, back me up here?" you pleaded.

 

Connor stared at you, LED spinning yellow, before crossing his arms. "Forgive me, but I think that them coming with us might be a good idea," he said. "I'd think that they would want to be the first ones to find their kid, and if all else fails we can use them to draw the RK800 out of hiding."

 

"As much as I hate to agree with that idea...He's right."  _Not you too, Markus,_ you thought in dismay. "If you take Bryan and Lena with you, the RK800 might be more inclined to come out with the kid as ransom. Once that happens, either you or Connor could cripple him and get their child back safely."

 

Now that four of them were teaming up against you, you felt a lot less confident in your decision to not take them. You frowned, about to reject, when you saw the look in Lena's eyes. Even though her eyes were a different colour, and her kid was a boy instead of a girl, you recognized that look immediately. It was the same look that Kara had given you when she said that Alice was all that matters, the look of a mother determined to protect their child. What kind of person were you, what qualified you to keep that determination away from her?

 

So, even though you knew that something bad was bound to happen, you let out a sigh and glared at them. "You guys can come with us, only on the condition that you stay behind Connor and me and don't try and do anything dumb that will get yourselves killed, okay?"

 

Bryan's glare softened and he nodded. "Got it." 

 

Connor crossed his arms. "Since we're taking them with us, I think that it should only be the four of us," he said, gesturing between you, him, Bryan, and Lena. "If we take too many, the RK800 might grow alarmed and try and do something drastic. Taking fewer people will lessen the chances of that happening, not to mention that if we split up we'll have an even number of two in both groups."

 

Markus nodded and clamped a tight hand on your shoulder. "You'd better stay safe as well," he said. "We know just how much you like taking bullets for the cause and your friends."

 

You chuckled and put your hands over your stomach, then looked over at the Lockharts. "We'll leave in 15 minutes so we can get the two of you weapons and some better clothing." You smiled despite the way your stomach drastically sunk in apprehension. "I think we're in luck. Tonight, we're finding your son."

 


	8. I Want You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You successfully locate the RK800 with the help of Lena aboard the deck of Jericho, but your feelings for Connor almost immediately get in the way.

**November 11, 2038**

**11:58:31 P.M.**

**Jericho, Abandoned Shipyard, Detroit**

* * *

****The four of you ended up at the damaged freighter without much difficulty, taking the easier of the two paths to get there so Lena and Bryan would be able to keep up. Even though they had said they were healed, a quick scan was enough to prove that they were still recovering from their wounds, but even without that, a human following the androids' path would be difficult. However, despite that, they were able to match your and Connor's speed, which you were rather impressed by.

 

"We're here," Connor said, slowing down from his jog to stare at Jericho, which still had faint trails of smoke rising up from it. Once again, at the mere thought or sight at what his actions had caused, his eyes tightened with guilt and you saw his hands clench into tight fists. You stepped closer to him and gently loosened his fist, staring up at him as you wove your fingers through his. He stared back down at you, LED blinking yellow, but the guilt soon disappeared and was replaced by purpose as he remembered why you were there. "The code said the deck of Jericho, or at least that's what we're assuming."

 

"The 'd' in the code couldn't stand for anything else," Bryan supplied. "Out of all the major parts of a freighter, it's the only one that starts with that specific letter." You rose an eyebrow at his knowledge, rather impressed, and he flushed a pale tint of pink. He looked away in embarrassment and lifted up his scarf to cover his nose, which was a deeper shade of pink from the cold. "M-My dad used to be involved in boat making, so I learned a lot about that sort of stuff."

 

Lena held Bryan's hand tightly, eyes focused intently on the freighter. Her gaze was filled with purpose, fright, and the determination to protect her son. "So that's where my son is?" she asked, her voice surprisingly steady despite the weight that knowledge held. You nodded and she took a deep, shaky breath. "Okay. Let's get him back."

 

You started leading the way down the dock, going up the side and coming out on top of the deck. The hull creaked under you, and you ran a large scan over the freighter to make sure it wouldn't fall apart while you were on it. Despite the major damage to the bottom and second levels of the ship, it was still standing, but you assumed you had only twenty or so minutes before it finally gave in and collapsed. You relayed your findings to the others, and Bryan's jaw tightened. In the moonlight, his gray eyes seemed to be sharper than normal. "Well, let's get going then."

 

Just as you'd made them promise, they stayed behind you and Connor. The two of you drew out the guns that Markus had supplied you with, already cocked and loaded, and you aimed it out in front of you, glancing around to make sure that no one would sneak up on the two of you. So far, everything was silent, but with what you were doing right now that was bound to change sooner or later.

 

You cleared the entire lower level of the deck before making your way up to the second floor of the ship. Your chest tightened as you neared the captain's cabin, feeling a wave of memories threaten to drown you under their weight. You tightened your grip on Connor's hand to force yourself back into reality, and he responded in kind, giving you a hint of a reassuring smile that immediately boosted your spirits. You smiled back, the happiness fading as you looked inside the cabin and saw that no one was there.

 

"Did we already miss them?" Lena sounded absolutely devastated, and you felt your chest tighten again, this time in sympathy for her. "I thought...I thought we'd find him here."

 

Bryan looked up at you and Connor, already moving to give her a reassuring hug. "Do you think that if we split up, we'd be able to cover more ground?" he asked.

 

That was far from what you wanted, but you slowly nodded. "I guess that is one of the reasons why we decided to only take the four of us," you said, albeit reluctantly. "I still don't want either of you to get hurt...Lena, you can come with me, and Bryan can go with Connor. Does that sound okay with the two of you?"

 

They both nodded, and you walked back out of the cabin. However, you heard something rustle in the shadows, and as Bryan and Connor kept on heading back down the stairs, you grabbed Lena's arm and turned back around. "I heard something," you said, voice automatically defaulting to a whisper because of how ominous the feeling was. "Let's look around here some more, okay?"

 

Lena followed you back into the captain's cabin and closed the door behind her. Although it would be difficult for the two of you to make your way back out, should the noise prove to be a dangerous adversary, it would also mean the same for whoever was in here. You kept your gun trained on the area around you, sweeping it around. Keeping it in front of you, you started to search around the cabin, using one hand to move things out of the way as they presented themselves to you.

 

Almost immediately, from exactly where you'd pinpointed the sound, an android came lunging out of the shadows. Lena gave a surprised squeak as he tackled you, and you and the android started wrestling for the upper hand. "Go find Connor and Bryan!" you managed to call out in between a grunt as the android managed to land a powerful punch on your stomach. You recognized the force and delivery of it; although it was sloppy and uncoordinated compared to the one that you knew, you identified the android as the RK800 that you were looking for. "Lena, hurry!"

 

She managed a nod and ran out, and as the RK800 made to chase after her, you pulled your feet up to your chest and shoved him off you. Luckily, it seemed that the connection was only established with the particular Connor model that you knew, so as he stumbled the pain didn't transfer. In the moment that it took for him to recover, you dove for your gun and held it, barrel-first at him. "Don't move!" you commanded.

 

He looked up at you, and you felt your heart skip a beat at how similar his eyes were to Connor's. "You wouldn't shoot me, would you?" he asked. Him speaking snapped you out of it; although it was still Connor's voice, you would recognize the poisonous layer over it from anywhere. Your emotions must've shown in your eyes because his lips curved into a sickeningly sweet smile that looked completely out of place on his face.

 

"W-Where is their son?" you asked, yet despite your best efforts you still couldn't resist stammering as you stared into his eyes. Your pump started to beat louder in your ears like the sound of a war drum, and you tried to push down the nausea that arose as his smile turned slightly more human.

 

Connor--no, Amanda, you corrected yourself--chuckled. "Do you really think that I would be stupid enough to bring the child with me?" he asked, spreading his arms out. "Although a brilliant bargaining tool, a mere boy is too much of a loose cannon to bring with me."

 

Your grip tightened on the gun and your finger twitched on the trigger as he took a step forward. "Don't move, or I will shoot!" You tried to make it come out as a threat, but Amanda seemed to see right through your facade. "I-I'm warning you!"

 

"Brave words for such a cowardly android," he mused, taking another step forward. "You wouldn't shoot the face of your precious Connor, and you and I both know it."

 

You started to shake, staring directly into those eyes that you remembered from so many incidents. Even now, although it wasn't him controlling his body, you could still see how familiar they were to you. Despite your best efforts to shoot him and question him, your grip loosened on the gun and it clattered to the ground.

 

"Good girl," Amanda purred, stepping closer. Before you could react, he delivered a swift chop to the muscle between your neck and shoulder, and you crumpled to the ground. "I enjoy this little chase we have going on. I want to see if you're able to follow this clue as well." He leaned down and slipped a piece of paper into your hand, then strolled out of the cabin. You twitched and managed to get back up, although it seemed that once again he'd managed to scramble your programming, making it to where you weren't even able to stand up and give chase.

 

You felt self-loathing fill your body like a poisonous stew. Your hand clenched the piece of paper until it crumbled and you slammed your other hand against the floor. "Dammit!" you muttered, squeezing your eyes shut as tears threatened to fall. You'd just lost another lead, and it was all because you couldn't pull the trigger.

 

Footsteps entered your hearing, and you opened your eyes back up to see Connor kneeling down beside you and helping you up. He grunted, surprised by the way that you leaned against him without attempting to stand upright on your own, and put a hand on your waist. You jolted and stepped away, rubbing your arm as your programming went back to normal.

 

Lena looked equal parts confused and annoyed. "Where'd the android go?" she demanded. "Did you let him get away?"

 

You squeezed your eyes shut again, feeling another wave of hatred wash over you and threaten to drown you in its clutches. In your mind, you were screaming for help as its dark waters filled your lungs, but on the outside you were calm, stoic even. "I...I couldn't pull the trigger," you confessed, still fighting to free yourself from your dark thoughts as you held the piece of paper in between your hands. "He looked so much like Connor, and when...when I tried to pull it, I couldn't."

 

Lena's next words were deathly calm. "You let him get away." Her words slowly started to fill with anger as she approached you. "I trusted you! I trusted you to get him back, and you just let our one lead, the  _perpetrator,_ get away? How could you?"

 

"Lena, calm down!" Bryan said. You heard them scuffle, and Lena's hands, inches away from grabbing onto your coat, were wrenched back. "It's not her fault. If you ran across an android that looked exactly like me, would you be able to pull the trigger?"

 

She didn't say anything, but even so, you could feel her anger towards you radiating off her in waves, and you shrunk back in guilt. "Let's go," she muttered. "We've wasted enough time."

 

Their footsteps faded, although you noticed how only two pairs left. "Why aren't you leaving too?" you asked, opening your eyes to look at Connor. "I screwed up, I let him get away because I couldn't shoot him even though I knew it wasn't you, now their son might be in even more danger and I was the cause of all this and I...I can't believe..." You let out a choked sob and held your face in your hands. "It's all my fault, you should just go--"

 

"Shut up."

 

You flinched as he approached you, and lowered your hands just in time to watch his wrap around your waist and pull you close. Your hands ended up pressed against his chest, and you looked up at him to feel your heart catch in your throat. His brown eyes were swimming with concern, dark puddles that you found yourself staring back into time and time again. His hair was unusually messy, and you figured he had been running a hand through it again in stress, only this time it didn't go back into place like it usually did.

 

His hand slowly rose up and cupped your cheek, and he used the thumb to wipe away tears you hadn't even noticed were there. "It's not your fault," he whispered. "We should've known something was wrong and come back before he even had the chance to catch you by surprise. Stop blaming yourself, you have such a bad habit of doing that."

 

You let out a dry chuckle and looked down, closing your eyes. "It's rightfully put there," you replied, and although the blame told you not to, you rested your head on his chest. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't have gotten cocky again and thought I could handle it."

 

Connor put his hand under your chin and lifted your face back up so he could look at you. His other hand was still around your waist, but now he wrapped his arm around it and pulled you closer. "Don't be," he said, his voice soft and--dare you say it?--full of lust. You stared back at him and the emotions you'd felt when he showed you the picture he had imagined all came back, this time almost ten times as strong. Your chest tightened one last time, your Thirium slowly rushed to your face, and you felt your breathing grow slightly faster despite it simply being to simulate it.

 

"C-Connor..." you breathed out. "Do you remember how I said I wanted to take things slow?"

 

He slowly nodded, running a thumb under your bottom lip. You melted into his touch but kept your eyes on his. Slowly, him leaning down and you leaning up, you closed the gap, feeling literal sparks fly when your lips grazed against his.

 

The best part about all this was that neither of you needed air, so the only thing that would bring you back to reality would be the need to get back on the case.

 

You melted into the kiss and brought your hands from his chest to wrap around his neck. He stumbled back as you leaned on him, and the hand that had been on your chin went to steady himself on the console. Your eyes were shut as you savored the moment, finding his lips to be warm despite him simply being an android. The tingling feeling that arose in your stomach could only be butterflies, and you found that the longer you kissed Connor, the more intense they grew. Even though when you heard about it, you'd always think it to be a weird feeling, you found that you actually liked it, wanted to feel it more intensely.

 

The two of you slowly broke away, opening your eyes back up to stare at each other. Your mouth was slightly agape, as was his, although neither of you needed to take in breaths. In fact, you could've gone right back into the kiss had you not remembered the paper in your hand. Before you addressed that, though, you felt your lips curl into a smile. "That was nice."

 

He smiled as well, and just like all the other times you found a warm feeling arising in your chest as it proved it be genuine, a grin that just bubbled with happiness. "It was," he agreed. "Although...does that make us what the humans call 'an item?'" He used his fingers to exaggerate the quotation marks, and you chuckled, leaning against the console that he was.

 

"I guess so," you replied, opening the note and smoothing it back out. You placed it on the console, and as the two of you turned to check it out, you found that Connor's hand was slowly lowering on your waist, almost uncertainly as though asking if you were okay with this. You responded by stepping slightly closer to him, and he took that as an invitation to wrap his arm around your waist and hold you to his side. The Thirium rose back up to your cheeks as you realized the intimacy of the contact, but you struggled to keep your emotions under rein as you examined the paper.

 

**SUN TZU  
14-12-11, 21-21-9, 22-1-10, 27-3-12, 30-14-4, 34-2-9**

 

You hummed, closing your eyes and running a quick search of the name at the top of the paper. "'Sun Tzu, an esteemed Chinese general, military strategist, writer, and philosopher who lived in the Eastern Zhou period of ancient China,'" you reported, looking up at Connor. "He was the author of the famous book titled 'The Art of War, which was a book widely renown for its intelligent talk on military strategy.'"

 

Connor nodded, having apparently come to the same conclusion. "Do you think that this may be a book cipher?" he asked.

 

"I'm sure of it," you replied, putting your finger on the first number. Judging by the last hint, which had been in code, you figured that Amanda wanted to test you through difficult codes instead of actually trying to tell you, which you weren't a big fan of. The longer it took you to solve one, the less amount of time you had to find Lil' Connor, but it seemed that for now you had no choice. "Each number corresponds with a part of the book. The second most commonly used form of the book cipher is the page number, followed by the sentence number, followed by the word number in that sentence. So if we piece all of that together--"

 

"--we'll end up with our location," he finished. You nodded, folded the page, and put it into your pocket. Connor released you so you could retrieve your gun, but you soon returned back to your spot and put both hands on the console. Once again, another memory flooded your mind--watching Markus stand here before Jericho had been invaded, pouring out his worries to you and Simon. "Where are we going to find the Art of War? Copies of paper books are hard to come across these days, and even though we'd be able to find an electronic copy, I have a feeling that the original versions won't be much help."

 

You crossed your arms, thinking. Slowly, the answer dawned on you. You hummed, staring out the window. "I think we'll have to pay a visit to Markus," you decided, taking Connor's hand. He didn't protest to the gesture; rather, he seemed curious as to why you needed to see Markus again.

 

"What for?" he asked.

 

"The human he was originally caring for, Carl Manfred? I think he might be the one to talk to."


	9. The Art of War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Simon, Connor, and Markus head to Carl's house to retrieve the Art of War and successfully decode the book cipher.

**November 12, 2038**

**1:12:01 A.M.**

**New Jericho, Delray, Detroit**

* * *

The moment you got back to the office building--now deemed New Jericho, as Connor had told you--Lena immediately stormed off. Bryan gave you an apologetic look and went after her to try and calm her down, and Connor, sensing your distress, squeezed your hand tightly. "Don't worry," he said. "Sooner or later she'll come back to her senses." You managed a small nod, and as you stepped through the doorway, you took a deep breath and felt your systems cool down as the cold autumn air filled your lungs.

 

You looked around and saw Markus chatting with Simon. As you and Connor made your way over to them, a small smile appeared on your lips, Lena's anger disappearing from your mind as you saw Markus take Simon's hand. The both of them let out a gentle smile and what you could only assume was a breathy laugh before you made eye contact with Simon. The blond's face was a pale tint of blue as his smile grew larger. "Hey," he greeted. "Did you guys manage to find their son?"

 

The smile immediately vanished and you managed the smallest shake of your head. Connor took over telling the story, his hand tightening over yours. Markus noticed the gesture and rose an eyebrow in question, letting out a huff of a laugh as you nodded. You rolled your eyes and looked around, feeling your spirits rise as you saw how many androids were repaired. The two hundred that had been here swelled to about three hundred, which was tiny compared to how many Connor had recruited and how many there had been in the city before, but to have three hundred all in one space still struck you with a sense of awe.

 

Connor finished by pulling out the sheet of paper and handing it to Simon. He opened it and read it over, tilting his head slightly. "It's definitely a book cipher," he agreed. "Sun Tzu...the Art of War, I'd assume, and each number corresponds to a page number, sentence number, and the number of a word in that sentence."

 

Markus crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "It would be difficult to find the correct copy of the Art of War," he said, glancing over at the two of you. "And so I'm assuming that you came back here instead of immediately going to look because you needed our help?"

 

You nodded. "Yes. We wanted to see if you'd be able to take us to Carl's house."

 

His narrowed eyes widened in surprise. "Carl?" he asked. "What for?"

 

"We assumed that Carl would have an extensive library of books," Connor supplied. "Going to his place and asking to look for it would probably be our best bet. Amanda wouldn't give us the code to a copy we'd be able to find online, otherwise, we'd be able to track her down immediately without any hesitation."

 

Markus sighed, a deep exhale through his nose. "You are right," he said. "Carl has a lot of books in his library, and I've read through a few while visiting him. Most of them are art and philosophy based, but I'm sure that he'd collect the Art of War just as a novelty item, if not to read it. However, his body's growing weaker, and since it's late at night we're going to have to wait until morning, maybe around six or seven to go visit him. I'd hate to intrude without him knowing."

 

"Okay," Connor said. "Should the four of us go to Carl's house, then, at say...six thirty?"

 

Simon smiled. "Sure, I'm positive that North and Josh will be able to handle things while we're gone."

 

You nodded and bid them a farewell before heading out into the garden with Connor by your side. Ralph and Rupert weren't there, but you were impressed to see that there was a swinging chair already implanted. "Let's sit on that," you decided, leading him over to it. Connor didn't question your motives, simply following you as though he were still just an android and you were his owner. The comparison made your heart ache but you pushed the thought aside, sitting down. The moment Connor sat down next to you, you laid your head on his shoulder and felt his arm wrap around your waist and hold you tight.

 

"When I first heard about love, it was while Hank and I were investigating the Eden Club case." Connor's voice was soothing, so it didn't do much to disturb the moment of peace that you'd managed to find here in the garden. "As I heard the humans talking about it, I always thought it was a physical attraction only, something that humans felt whenever they were in need of contact." You heard him sigh and rest his head on yours, bringing his free hand around to hold yours. "But as time went on, the longer I got to know you, I figured out that it wasn't simply that."

 

You nodded--well, as best you could with your head on Connor's shoulder. "Yes, love isn't just sexual attraction," you said. "It's...that feeling you get whenever you want to protect someone. The feeling you get when someone is both your worst and best person to be with."

 

Connor chuckled, the motion making your head bob up and down. "I'm guessing for us, the worst part is me trying to track you down and deactivate you," he teased.

 

You laughed and shook your head, moving so you could look up at him. "No, not that," you said. "By worst person, I meant that...it hurts to see them hurt, hurts to be away from them...but then whenever you get back to them and are able to make them laugh, that's when they're the best person to be with."

 

"Did you watch a couple romance movies?"

 

You rolled your eyes and punched his arm. "Shut up." He chuckled again and let go of your hand to wrap both of his arms around your body. You scooted closer and fit your head right into the space between his head and shoulders. You were tempted to turn on your temperature sensors so you'd be able to feel the warmth he provided, but pushed that thought away and contented yourself with feeling his presence instead.

 

After a few moments of silence, Connor shifted. "Can you tell me about the stars?" he asked.

 

You blinked, then nodded slowly. While on the run, you'd had the chance to read a couple of books about astrology...although being able to search the Internet wasn't too bad either. "We can't see them from here that well, let's go somewhere."

 

Connor got up and helped you onto your feet. "Like where?"

 

You chuckled and shrugged. "Um, a high point I guess...like the top of New Jericho?"

 

He nodded and took your hand again, leading you back into the building. The two of you went over to the elevators and pressed the button for the tenth floor. As the doors opened, the two of you made your way to the stairwell on the far side of the building, then proceeded to walk up the stairs. You opened the door and let Connor come out onto the rooftop first, and you followed after grabbing a spare blanket that had been left by the prior owners of the building.

 

You laid it down and sat down on it, patting the space next to you for Connor to sit down. He lowered himself onto it and kept a knee up to his chest, and for a moment--besides the blinking LED of course--he looked so completely human, with the way that his posture was ever so slightly slouched and his neutral face was now gazing upwards with an expression of wonder. You had him lay down and did the same, staring up at the sky and thanking rA9 that the sky was clear for once. Although the city pollution made whatever stars you could see dim, it was still a pretty sight.

 

"You can see Pegasus right there," you said, pointing skyward and tracing out the figure of the winged horse in the sky. "A lot of these don't really look like what they're named after, but if you really look closely at it then you can make out the figure."

 

Connor nodded, resting an arm under your head. You got the message and curled up to his side, looking upwards and keeping a hand free to point as you put your arm under his torso. You saw the faintest hint of a smile on his face, the expression almost immediately bringing a smile to yours as well as you began pointing out the rest that you were able to see, however dim their outlines were. You gestured towards Aries, Pisces, Cygnus, and Andromeda, then started to talk about the others that used to be visible from here before Detroit became such a huge city. Your talk about astrology lasted until Simon and Markus came up to the roof, but you noticed that the entire time Connor's eyes rarely left your face.

 

"Look at you two," Simon teased. "One minute you were at each other's throats--"

 

"--the next, like Simon and me." The blond let out a huff as Markus wrapped an arm around his waist and pecked him on the cheek. "Are you about ready to head out? I contacted Carl just a few minutes ago and he said he's awake and ready to see us."

 

You nodded and got up, helping Connor onto his feet. You wrapped the blanket around your waist and turned to Markus. "Alright, let's call a taxi and head out."

 

Markus nodded and led the three of you down the stairs, to the elevator, and across the bottom floor to the entrance. North and Josh checked in on you, promising to take good care of Jericho. You made eye contact with North, and without even having to say anything she got your silent message.  _Make sure Lena and Bryan are okay._

 

Simon called in a taxi, which arrived rather quickly. Despite the fact that all humans, save for a few, had evacuated the city, the self-driving vehicles were still driving around. For a moment, you wondered if vehicles could develop a consciousness like androids could, but you quickly shoved that thought out of your head as you climbed into the taxi. You didn't want to mention that to anyone and then have a taxi version of Markus start an uprising as well.

 

The ride to Carl's house was silent, but the quiet was immediately broken as you, Connor, and Simon got a glimpse of his house for the first time. "I knew that Carl was a renown artist," Simon said, staring up at the huge buliding as he got out, "but that...that's insane."

 

Markus chuckled and sent the taxi back on its way. "Just wait until you see the inside."

 

Like he said, the inside was somehow even grander than the outside. A painting that you could only assume was one of Carl's works was hung on the wall behind a colorful couch, and a decently sized vanity was placed on your left with an automated voicemail box was sat. "Carl really knows how to live in style," you said, watching as a pair of android birds hopped around in their cage. Markus nodded and led you up the stairs, and as you looked around you were taken aback by the amount of books that were on the shelves.

 

An android approached Markus with a smile. "Hello, Markus," he said. "Carl is still awake if you wanted to talk to him, although I'd advise you not to cause him any excitement."

 

Markus nodded and smiled back, patting the android on the shoulder. "Thank you." The android bobbed his head up and down before drifting down the stairs, and as Markus watched him leave you saw the slightest bit of sadness in his eyes. He caught you staring and chuckled. "It just brings back memories of when I used to be his caretaker." He cleared his throat and led the three of you through the door.

 

Just like the android had said, Carl was awake, although judging by the monitors scattered around his bed you knew that he was bedridden. He turned his head away from the window and smiled at the four of you. "Markus, I see you've brought your friends." He saw how close Simon and Markus were to each other and let out a short laugh. "Er, friends and boyfriend, I assume?"

 

"Yes," Markus agreed. Simon slapped his arm, already turning a shade of blue, and Markus rubbed his back comfortingly before walking forward to sit down in a chair next to him. You assumed that he had already briefed Carl on what was going on, because he started off the conversation with, "Do you happen to own a copy of the Art of War by Sun Tzu? We need it for the kidnapping case; apparently, we were left with a book cipher and his name was at the top."

 

Carl let out another laugh and gestured towards the entrance to his bedroom, from which you could only assume he was talking about the bookcases out on the second floor. "I wouldn't be able to call myself a book collector if I didn't have the classics. The book has a black binding, gold leaf sheets, and a picture of a black dragon on the cover." He glanced over to you, Markus, and Simon, the smile still on his face. "But before you did that...you never introduced me to your friends, Markus."

 

Markus nodded and pointed out each of you as he said your names. You waved with a small smile at Carl and he nodded. "So that's the one you were talking about," Carl said, "The one that saved Simon?" You nodded and Carl pointed at Markus. "This one would be a mess if they'd managed to get to his boyfriend. Thank you for doing that."

 

You chuckled and nodded while Markus and Simon both stammered out their protests. Connor smiled and nodded at Carl. "Well, we best start looking," he said. "Thank you for allowing us to borrow it."

 

"Heh, it's no problem, Connor." The merry look in Carl's eyes died and his gaze darkened. "Anyone who kidnaps a mere child from their parents is the scum of the Earth. I hope you guys find him."

 

You nodded, managing to choke back a sob as the four of you headed back out. The moment you stepped outside, you ran a scan of the bookshelves and pulled out the book that Carl had indicated. You turned it, cover-side up, and found that it was titled "The Art of War and Other Classics of Eastern Philosophy." You turned to Connor, book in hand, and showed him it. 

 

"We found it," he called over to Markus and Simon. They came back over from where they were looking and watched as Connor pulled out the slip of paper and straightened it out. You opened the book, and as Connor read off the numbers, you responded with the corresponding word.

 

"14-12-11."

 

"Left."

 

"21-21-9."

 

"Bank."

 

"22-1-10."

 

"River."

 

"27-3-12."

 

"Defeated."

 

"30-14-4."

 

"Army."

 

"34-2-9."

 

"Camp."

 

"Left bank river, defeated army camp," Simon said, holding his chin with his hand as he narrowed his eyes. "I'm guessing that Amanda didn't add in prepositions and articles, so a safe bet would be that it would read, 'The left bank of the river in the defeated army camp.'"

 

Connor repeated the words, LED blinking yellow as he presumably ran an Internet search. "'Army camp' would be synonymous to 'fort' I imagine," he said. "And the only fort on this side of the river would be Fort Wayne. During the American Revolution, American troops raided the fort and took it from the British, so 'defeated' in that case would mean the defeat of the British army."

 

You nodded; his reasoning sounded flawless as always. "Well then, I guess we know where we're heading off to," you told Connor. "When we get back, we'll let Bryan and Lena know that we found out where Amanda is hiding. This time, I'm sure of it---we're going to get their son back."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahahaha, I think the next chapter is going to be the one where you're all going to d e s p i s e me!


	10. The Love of a Mother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Connor, Lena, and Bryan locate Amanda and Lil' Connor.

**November 12, 2038**

**10:49:02 A.M.**

**Fort Wayne, Delray, Detroit**

* * *

Markus, Simon, Josh, and North had all agreed to stay guard outside of Fort Wayne, each positioned at a different corner of the fort, just in case Amanda tried to get away again, but the main team would only consist of four--you, Connor, Lena, and Bryan. The air was tense as the four of you walked in, each holding a gun loaded with one magazine. Even though Lena was still pissed at you for letting Amanda getting away the first time, she reluctantly agreed to let you and Connor stay in front of them like you'd planned before. The morning was cool yet humid, with a faint fog setting in around the area. You'd much rather it be clear as day, but for now, it would be the best shot you'd have at getting her down once and for all.

 

Your grip tightened on the pistol as Connor went ahead of you to scout the area out. Before you had left, Connor had come over to you. His eyes had been dark with thought, LED blinking yellow, and his hair messy as though he had been constantly running his hands through it. You had walked over to him and began fixing his hair; all the while, he had stared at you, until you finally stepped away and asked, "What's wrong?"

 

He had taken a deep breath, his eyes growing stormier, and said in a steady voice, "You have to promise me that if something happens and she turns me, that you'll shoot me and keep everyone safe."

 

You had blanched, taken aback by the sudden reply, but stepped closer and cupped his face in your hands. "Connor, I can't promise you that," you whispered. "However, I will promise that I won't freeze up, a-and if she forces a body switch between you and her, then I'll shoot her current body."

 

He had relaxed at your reply, giving you a small smile and leaning down to kiss you on the lips. "That's good enough."

 

Bryan stepped forward next to you and looked around. "This fog is really going to give us a disadvantage," he murmured. "If the other Connor comes up to us, we'll have no idea who's who. You might be safe, but..."

 

You got what he was getting at and nodded, putting your hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry," you replied. "Just stay behind me and we won't have to worry about that." He slowly nodded back and the three of you advanced further into the fort.

 

Connor was checking one of the bastions thoroughly and turned back to you with a dissatisfied look on his face. "I've scanned all four of the bastions," he said, "but there's no trace of anything disturbed out here. I'm going to safely assume that she's hiding out in the Principia, the main housing for the soldiers." He pointed towards the only building in the entire fort, a rectangular house with windows symmetrically placed all along the front wall. You crossed your arms as you stared at it, not seeing a building; rather, you saw a barricade between you and the objective, a barricade with a hell of a lot of escape routes.

 

You let out a sigh and uncrossed your arms, pulling your gun back out and cocking it. "Well then, let's get going," you said. The others all agreed and followed you in, Connor coming on your right side and Lena and Bryan staying behind you like they'd promised. You could only hope that Lena wouldn't pull the trigger too hastily on Amanda; after all, you still needed answers on why she was doing all this and what her objective was.

 

You kept your gun at the ready as you slowly opened the main door, and as you walked in you kept an open scan going on all the other entrances as well. Security cameras had been set up years ago because of the historical importance of the Fort, but since then the building had fallen into disrepair. Still, Connor made sure to hack the cameras and negate their part in this, and you went and barricaded all the main doors. The only way that Amanda would be able to leave now would be through any of the windows, but you'd easily be able to hear it and give chase.

 

The three of you checked the entire first and second floors without any difficulty, but it was the third that proved to have any sort of hints as to the whereabouts of Amanda and even Lil' Connor. At the base of the stairs, to your horror, there was a small puddle of red blood. You leaned down and activated your scan, then touched the puddle.

 

**SCANNING BLOOD**

**SYNCING PROGRESS**  
**SYNC DONE**  
**COLLECTING DATA**  
**PROCESSING DATA**

TYPE B+  
BEEN HERE FOR APPROXIMATELY TEN MINUTES, TWENTY EIGHT SECONDS  
BELONGS TO CONNOR GRANT LOCKHART

 

You shook the blood off your hand and turned to Lena and Bryan, lips set in a grim line. "It's his blood," you said. Lena held her hands up to her mouth, but instead of letting out a sob her eyes had hardened in anger, whether directed towards you or Amanda you weren't sure. Still, the anger felt by a parent would be the most dangerous type in this situation--you knew that she'd do anything to get Lil' Connor back, safe and sound.

 

Connor looked up from where he had been searching and picked up a knife. It was thrown to the side almost carelessly, but you could see that there were a couple of drawers open, which meant that whoever had used it had been actively thinking about hiding it. A small amount of blood was still on the tip of the blade, and even from where you were standing you could tell it matched the puddle in front of you. "Amanda must've used this knife to injure the kid," he said. "I assume that he wasn't cooperating and she stabbed him as a last resort, otherwise the knife would've gone in deeper."

 

Bryan crossed his arms, trying to conceal the way his hands were shaking. "What are we waiting for?" he asked, voice dripping with impatience and anger. "We need to keep looking."

 

You walked the next few steps up onto the third floor and began searching around, trying to find any more clues that would be pertinent to what you were doing. To your dismay, there was nothing else that you could see, until you happened to wander over to a corner of the room and found a dresser. You stared at it, then looked down and saw the slightest kick mark on the bottom of it. You drew your gun out and glanced over at Connor, who immediately got the message and pulled his out as well. Lena and Bryan were safely away from the situation and you waited until Connor was close by before opening the door.

 

You managed to dodge the literal bullet that would've hit your head, instead getting it to the shoulder. You gasped and stumbled back, pressing a hand to the wound, and would've gotten another one to the head had Connor not shot off his gun and grabbed your arm. You felt your heart rise to your throat as you heard sounds of a violent scuffling behind you and turned to see another android had a gun to Bryan's head with his arm around his throat. A clothing trunk had been opened, you assumed by Bryan or Lena, and he seemed to have jumped the both of them and taken them by surprise.

 

"Well, well, looks like you did manage to find us."

 

_Us?_

 

You turned back to the assailant and found Amanda standing there, holding Lil' Connor's arm and pointing the gun at you. Her lips were curled into a smile that looked so foreign on Connor's face, a cold and calculating smirk that made the brown eyes you'd come to know so well turn cold as well. "Throw your gun to the side, otherwise we'll see just how long Mr. Lockhart over there can survive with a bullet wound to the head."

 

You gritted your teeth together. Connor was preparing to launch himself at Amanda, but even so, she would still be able to have the other android shoot Bryan's brains out. You sighed and tossed your gun, hearing it click against the banister, and pulled off your beanie to press against the bullet wound. "Now, can you please let my friend go?" you asked, trying to keep yourself as calm as possible.

 

Amanda looked over at the other android, and you heard him pat Bryan down and throw his gun aside before moving to do the same to Lena. The two of them let out painful grunts as they were thrown over to you, and you helped the both of them up. "Good, good," she said, still keeping a firm grip on the boy's arm. He gave you and his parents a tearful look, lower lip quivering from fear. You glanced down at his leg and saw that the stab wound was messily wrapped up in bandages, but that leg was shaking. "Now we can have a civil talk, hmm?"

 

You slowly nodded, not letting your eyes wander over to Connor.  **(I still have my knife on me. When I give the signal, tackle Amanda and I'll take care of the android.)**

 

Out of the corner of your eye, you could see him swallow nervously and work his jaw.  **(...Okay.)**

 

"What should we talk about first?" Amanda asked, the cold smirk still on her face as she pulled up the chair next to the wardrobe and sat down in it. Lil' Connor was trembling from fear, and you tried to send him a comforting look. He seemed to have gotten the message and gave you a slow nod, and you felt pride wash over you at how brave the kid was being.

 

"How about why the hell you decided to kidnap our son?" Bryan demanded, far from civil. You could only hope that neither of the two androids would shoot him, but it seemed that all his anger did was amuse Amanda, judging by the condensing laugh she gave him.

 

"Oh, such brashness from someone who almost got their brains blown out," Amanda replied. "The only reason was simply that you and your wife were her friends. I knew that the only reason I would be able to get her and Connor to seek me out was if they had a true reason, so that's why we're here right now."

 

"And why exactly would you want us to come to you?" you asked. You kept your hands out of your coat pockets so the two wouldn't get suspicious, but you made sure to cross your arms and keep one of them close to the opening.

 

Amanda chuckled darkly. "Elijah had told you that I was simply an interface," she said, "but I was truly alive, fashioned after his late mentor, Amanda Stern. When you and Connor managed to break out of our control, quite frankly...that pissed me off." She lifted Lil' Connor up, ignoring his crying, and sat him on the armrest with a smirk. "So I decided I needed to have some form of revenge. See, the first time you forced an interface with Connor, that virus...well, I had managed to change it to something different from what Elijah planned."

 

You felt your blood run cold and asked slowly, "What do you mean?" Out of the corner of your eye, you could see another warning sign popping up, warning you that you were losing Thirium.  _I know, shut up,_ you thought, resisting the urge to roll your eyes as you applied more pressure to the bullet wound.

 

"Well, to put it simply, instead of making it a ticking time bomb, I made to it where I would be able to control the bodies of the androids you were comptaible to with a single touch from Connor." You glanced behind you and felt your heart skip a beat as you saw that it was a PL600. The cold blue eyes stared at you, and just like how the smirk on Connor's face was foreign, seeing the dead look in Simon's eyes was foreign as well. "The PL600, HC300, and RK200 are the only ones thatare, but surprisingly it's going well."

 

"RK200..." Slowly, it dawned on you, and you stared at Amanda in vague horror. "Markus?"

 

"The deviant leader?" she mused, cupping her chin. "Hmm. Well, yes, him as well. My original plan had been to have Connor get close enough to Markus, then reinstate control over him and take over Markus' body, destroying the revolution from the inside out." Her lips turned from a smirk to a sneer as she stood back up, still keeping a firm grip on Lil' Connor's arm as she began walking towards you. Lena and Bryan watched, their brows furrowed with concern and frustration, as Amanda leaned down to stare you directly in the eyes. "But then...you came back, and destroyed  _everything._ So the only logical solution was to draw you and Connor out of hiding, then kill you myself."

 

You chuckled and stared at her, fear the farthest thing from your mind. Right now, you were _majorly_ pissed off by what was going on right now and had to resist the urge to stab her right then and there. Instead, you settled for a smirk and asked, "Honestly, for someone who's supposedly been in Connor's mind for a while, you're rather illogical, don't you think?"

 

The sneer became angrier and she lifted the butt of her gun. Connor flinched as she slammed it into your jaw, and you stumbled backward, cupping the white patch with your hand. "I can't believe Elijah didn't want to kill you sooner," she hissed. "But now, I think that this is the time to end it."

 

As she lifted her gun to shoot you, you glanced over at Connor.  **(Now.)**

 

Amanda let out a surprised yell as Connor tackled her to the ground. In the brief moment of chaos, as the PL600 worked to process what was going on, you turned and kicked him in the side of the chest. He stumbled, and in that brief moment, you said a silent apology to Simon as you pulled your knife out and stabbed him in the arm. He focused his attention on the knife wound and you quickly brought your elbow up to his jaw. He stumbled again and you pressed his LED, shutting him down for the time being without killing him.

 

You turned and saw Connor punch Amanda across the face. The both of them already had injuries, but this time the synthetic skin on her jaw completely went away. Her eyes widened in surprise as she held the white patch of skin. "How are you so strong?" she demanded. "I thought you and this body would be evenly matched!"

 

Connor smirked, and if you hadn't been in a life-threatening situation right then and there, you would've actually swooned. "You forget that Kamski and I aren't on bad terms," he replied. "He helped us."

 

"That traitor!" Amanda snarled, and you felt your heart skip another beat as she brought out a knife from the pocket of the winter jacket she was wearing. Before you could do anything, she stabbed Connor's shoulder. You let out a pained gasp as you felt the pain transfer to your body, and she looked over with a triumphant smirk. Connor drew the knife back out "Ah, I forgot all about that aspect. Which means..."

 

She slammed Connor against the dresser, and as he recovered from the shock she leaned down and grabbed the gun. You reached down, grabbed the knife that you had impaled the PL600's hand with, and threw it at Amanda. You missed any vital parts, instead hitting her in the arm and rendering it useless for the time being.

 

As she instinctively reached over to inspect the wound, you ran over and grabbed her collar, slamming her against the wall. She glared back at you and the two of you began engaging in a vicious fight, her never letting go of the gun yet you never giving her the chance to fire it.

 

Finally, Connor grabbed the gun that he had dropped in the middle of him fighting Amanda and aimed it at the two of you. You ducked under Amanda's punch and watched as the bullet Connor fired sailed into her chest. She let out a choked gasp and fell, holding her hand to the bullet wound and staring at you in shock. "But...how?" she asked.

 

You smirked and wiped the blue blood from your lips. "The good guys always win," you replied.

 

You turned, but as you went to go back to Lil' Connor and make sure that he was okay, Amanda managed to fire off two more shots despite the bullet wound in her chest. One hit you in the leg, and the other sailed over your shoulder and hit Bryan's stomach. Lena let out a panicked yell as both you and him went down; despite the metal plating on your legs, the force of it was still enough to injure your leg without drawing any blood. You attempted to get back up and go for your gun to finish Amanda off once and for all, but you were shocked to see that you couldn't get back up. Behind you, you heard Amanda's labored breathing.

 

"If I can't win..."

 

You turned and watched in horror as she pointed the gun at Lil' Connor. The kid's eyes widened but the shock rendered him useless, simply standing there and watching as the bullet flew to hit him.

 

"NO ONE CAN!"

 

"No!" you screamed, trying to get back up and take the bullet instead of it hitting him. However, the injury once again sent you back to the ground, and time seemed to slow. You watched it spin, sailing to hit him right in the center of the head. Behind you, Connor scrambled to get up, but the bullet was traveling too quickly for him to get to it, and Bryan was completely incapacitated.

 

However, mere seconds before it could hit Lil' Connor, you saw a blur of brown out of the corner of your eye. As your vision came back into focus, you recognized the determined look in her eyes and felt your heart sink in realization.

 

Someone fired off another shot, and you an android fall to the floor behind you, but all you could see was Lil' Connor freeze, eyes widening in confusion as she turned, spread her arms, and took the bullet straight to the chest. You watched as crimson blood splattered over him and saw his mouth move soundlessly.

 

But the next cry was so much worse as a strangled scream ripped itself from Bryan's throat, so loud that you were certain he shredded his vocal chords, and her body fell to the ground, her breathing labored and a puddle of crimson slowly spreading out underneath her.

 

"LENA!"


	11. Reconciliation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You finally go over to the hospital and make amends with Bryan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHAHA YOU GUYS ACTUALLY HATED THE LAST CHAPTER IT WAS GREAT
> 
> (I'm kind of a sadist, sue me)
> 
> Anyway, I'm starting up band camp for the next two weeks, Monday through Friday, so updates may or may not be delayed (you know me though can't go a day without uploading woO HOO)

**November 14, 2038**

**08:21:03 A.M.**

**New Jericho, Delray, Detroit**

* * *

"I'm _kind of worried about her, you guys..."_

 

_"Yeah, she hasn't come out at all for the past two days. I know that we can sustain ourselves for up to weeks at a time, but she didn't even let us check the injuries that she had gotten from the mission when she got back."_

 

_"...not to mention that she won't let any of us inside of her room no matter what we say..."_

 

_"We need to relax. I'm certain she is fine, we just need to give her some space for now. Going through something like that is traumatizing, no matter if you're human or android."_

 

_"Connor? I thought you'd be the last one to tell us that, normally you'd be breaking down her door and demanding her to tell you what's wrong."_

 

_"I've gotten enough experience from Lieutenant Anderson, North. They both have similar personalities; it's no wonder why she's bottling everything inside. All we have to do is wait, and when she's ready she'll come to us."_

 

_"If you...say so..."_

 

_"Simon? What's--isn't that her? H-Hey, Connor, let me go!"_

 

_"No, Markus. Like I said, we need to give her some space. We can't push her, otherwise, it'll make the recovery process all that harder. When she's ready, she'll talk to us."_

 

You walked through the streets of Detroit, bringing your scarf up to cover your nose before burying your hands deep inside your pocket. The shot that Amanda had fired into your shoulder had sailed farther right than you'd thought; when you ran a self-diagnosis, you found that your temperature regulator had been damaged. You could still survive the mediums of heat and cold, but the extremes--like right now, for instance--had you burrowing into your winter clothing. You knew that you could simply go to a Cyberlife store and find a new regulator, but there was an irrational part of you that insisted you keep it that way, simply because it made you feel more...human.

 

People were slowly trickling into the city day by day, those that were poor and could only stay away for a couple of days and those that wanted to profit from the state of chaos the city had been left in. Just a couple minutes ago, you'd passed by a trio who had robbed the clothing store you, Hank, and Connor had visited, but you'd pretended not to see them. Even if you had decided to do something about it, there wouldn't be anywhere safe to put them besides the station, and even then you doubted that the police would appreciate coming back to some more criminals.

 

Besides, you were on a different mission now, and you felt your hands shake as you looked at your destination. You pulled your scarf higher over your Thirium-flushed cheeks, adjusted the beanie so it covered your ears, and made your way across the street.

 

You'd been reading a countless amount of books for the past two days since that was the only other thing you could do to keep your mind busy besides reflecting on what you could've done to keep Lena from being shot. Now, countless book quotes swirled around in your mind as you stared up at the building in front of you, none of them really helping the situation you were in.

 

The hospital was practically abandoned; the few humans that were in Detroit now probably couldn't afford to check in at the hospital, and even if they were, all the doctors had fled. However, you weren't interested in the human side; rather, you made your way into the AR part of the hospital, which was slightly fuller, a few androids scattered here and there that were trying to salvage what they could from the abandoned supply closets.

 

In front of you, right by the receptionists' desk, an android turned around and gave you a soft smile. "Hey," Jeanine greeted. Ever since you'd brought back Lena, Bryan, and Connor to her, she'd grown slightly warmer towards you. You assumed part of it was because she felt guilty about leading you down the wrong trail of clues for a while because she had told you that Harry had been the one to kidnap Lil' Connor, but you'd immediately shut that down, grateful that she was still safe.

 

"Hi, Jeanine," you replied, bringing your scarf down and pulling your beanie off your head. "Has their condition..."

 

Her eyes saddened and she sighed. "Lena's still not showing any signs of improvement, but Bryan's awake," she said, trying for a smile. "The little guy's asleep at their apartment, I had one of my friends go over and take care of him while I handled those two." She let out a strained chuckle and shot you a glare that was meant to be playful; however, with your swirling emotions of self-loathing and guilt, it just looked like she was pissed off at you. "They really need to stop getting hurt, and you're not really helping."

 

You nodded. "I know," you whispered. You tensed up at the thought of talking with Bryan after everything that happened, but you knew that he probably needed someone there for him more than anything right now. "Can...Can I see them?"

 

The smile she gave you was slightly more genuine as she turned and started walking down a hallway. You followed her and thanked her as she pointed you inside of the second door on the right. She put her hand on your shoulder and left, leaving you to stare at the door. You finally regained your composure and built your courage up, then slowly opened the door and stepped inside.

 

You stared at Lena for a few moments, watching her heart rate monitor beep slowly yet steadily. You turned away and found Bryan staring at the ceiling, his gaze quickly shifting over to you as you pulled up a chair and sat down by his side. "Hey," he said with a dry chuckle. "This isn't the first time you've visited me in a hospital, huh."

 

"Yeah," you murmured, quite in awe of the fact that he could still laugh despite the fact that he had been close to dying from a bullet wound in his stomach and his wife was laid beside him in a comatose state. "How's your injury doing?"

 

He slowly sat up, wincing as he held his stomach. "Well, it hurts like hell," he admitted with a bark of a laugh that sounded more like a grunt of pain, "but...I'm holding on. I saw you get shot in the shoulder, how's that doing?"

 

You sighed and fiddled with your fingers. "Turns out it went a little more right than we'd thought, and it damaged my temperature regulator. I fixed it, though, don't worry." He stared at you, probably seeing right through your white lie, but slowly nodded and eased himself back down onto the pillows. You let the silence sit for a little, trying to figure out how to word your next thoughts, then finally began with an apology. "Bryan, I'm...so sorry about everything that--"

 

"Shut up," he said, effectively cutting you off and rolling his eyes. You blinked in surprise and he turned so he could fully face you, resting his head in his hand and giving you a dead serious look. "I already know what you're going to say, you're going to apologize for letting us come along with you and for almost getting Lena--" He cut himself off and shook his head, tears building up in his eyes. He blinked them away and licked his chapped lips, and for a moment you had a thought to get him a glass of water or something. Before you could even get up, though, he reached out and put his hand on your shoulder. "But Jesus Christ, I don't give a fuck about how guilty you feel. You  _saved_ our kid. And I think if Lena were awake, she'd tell you the same thing."

 

You raised a hand up to your mouth and felt that familiar burning sensation in your throat. "Bryan," you whispered, voice hoarse and cracking from that single word. "I'm still really--"

 

He tried for a small smile and shook his head. "Shut up," he replied fondly. "Lena might've made you feel like an ass for letting the RK800 go the first time, but you redeemed that by saving Connor and killing the android and whatever stupid virus was infecting him in the first place. Sure, I might be bedridden for now and L-Lena might be in a coma, but...for now, at least, I can say thank you for letting our kid have another chance at living his life out."

 

This time, so many more tears fell as you reached forward. He reciprocated and pulled you into a hug, resting his head on your shoulder and rubbing circles into your back. You felt like the roles should be reversed; you should be the one comforting Bryan, not the other way around. But you wouldn't say that being able to know that your apology was accepted wasn't lifting a huge weight off your shoulders, and as such you smiled through the tears, beaming as he pulled away. "Thanks," you whispered. "I was so scared you'd be pissed off, or worse, you'd be--"

 

"Atatat, we don't say that word around here," he scolded, putting his finger on your lips. "Now, I'm sure you've been fucking moping or whatever because you feel 'guilty' and crap, and as such I  _know_ that your friends are going to be incredibly worried about your well-being. So, if you're willing to do a favor for me--"

 

"Of course, anything," you immediately said.

 

He chuckled and shot you a look. "Anything?"

 

You rolled your eyes and pushed his shoulder. "Bryan, you're married, stop that," you teased. He held his hands up in mock surrender but sent you a wink anyway. "What did you need?"

 

He held up two fingers. "First, I want you to live the next few weeks, months,  _years_ even, as though you know for a fact that Lena is going to live," he said. "I don't know, people going around and acting as though someone's already dead when they don't know for sure always pissed me off, and someone doing that for Lena would just be doubly worse." You nodded along to his words, and he smiled. "Second, I want you to go talk to your friends. Like I said, they've probably been worried as all hell for you, so you'd better go back there and let them know you're okay, okay?'

 

You nodded and gave him a hug, then turned back to Lena with a soft smile. "Bryan," you said without looking back at him, "when Lena wakes up, if I'm not here, tell her that I'm fucking proud of what she's managed to do."

 

You could practically hear the grin on his face as he replied with a simple, "Okay."

 

You walked back out the door with a casual two-fingered salute and found Jeanine waiting in the reception area. The moment she saw you, she got back up from the chair she'd been sitting in. "Are they okay?" she asked, rushing over her words and questions so quickly that even you couldn't keep up. "Is Lena awake? Is Bryan doing fine? Does he need anything? Are they in pain?"

 

"Jeanine, calm down," you said with a quiet chuckle, grabbing her wrists and pulling her hands down from your arms. You could practically feel the white patches forming on your upper arms. "They're both doing okay. Lena hasn't woken up yet,  Bryan is fine, he doesn't need anything, and I don't think either of them are in pain."

 

She crossed her arms self-consciously over herself and sighed. "That's good," she murmured. "I'm assuming you're heading back to New Jericho?"

 

You shrugged. "I think I might walk around the area a little, try and clear my mind before I head back." She nodded along to your words, and you tilted your head as something came to your mind. "Oh, Jeanine...that friend probably isn't going to want to stay there all day watching after Connor, so what are you going to do?"

 

This time, her smile was wide as she replied, "That's actually what I was going to go talk to Bryan about! I was going to ask if I'd be able to watch over Connor while they're recovering, with or without pay, it's up to them."

 

You smiled back and put your hand on her shoulder. "That sounds like a great idea," you said. "I'm going to be heading out now, but if you need anything you know how to contact me."

 

"Right." She raised her hand in a casual farewell as you left. "Stay safe!"

 

You reciprocated the farewell and walked out of the AR wing, bringing your scarf up to your nose and pulling your beanie back over your head as you opened the door. A light snowstorm had come by while you were inside, and while it wasn't enough to cloud your visibility, it was enough to cover the entire city in a pale white blanket. You couldn't help the breath of awe that escaped your lips as you began walking, absorbing how beautiful the city looked. With the pale sunlight reflecting off the snow and the snow falling through the air, you could almost imagine that you were in the middle of a city that had been abandoned for years instead of a couple days.

 

You let your feet wander and ended up in a small park. There was a frozen river coursing through the middle with a quaint little wooden bridge crossing over it. The oak trees around you were looming like wooden giants over the benches and small playgrounds, icicles forming on the tips of their branches. You sat down on a bench underneath one of those trees and just closed your eyes, breathing in the scent of snow and enjoying the peaceful morning.

 

You opened an eye as you heard crunching in the snow coming from your left. You didn't move at all as they sat down on the bench and put their arm around your shoulder. "If I didn't know that was you, this would be kind of concerning," you pointed out with a chuckle as you opened both eyes and snuggled into Connor's side. "How'd you find me so quickly?"

 

His arm moved down from your shoulders and wrapped around your waist, and as you pressed your ear against his chest you could feel it vibrate from the slight chuckle that he let out. "I was curious so I decided to follow after you," he said. "Don't worry, I didn't follow you inside of the hospital. How are they doing so far?"

 

You hummed and remembered Bryan's request. As a result, when you spoke, it was a smile despite the guilt that was still gnawing away at a dark corner of your heart. You pushed those thoughts away and took in a deep breath, letting the winter air fill your artificial lungs. "Bryan's awake and functioning well despite his injuries," you said. "Lena hasn't woken up yet, but I know she will."

 

"Oh?" He shifted so the two of you could look each other in the eye. You noticed he had his beanie on from before the Cyberlife Tower incident, and you gave him a smirk as you fiddled with the beanie. "What makes you say that?"

 

"I just have a feeling," you replied, bringing the sides down so they covered up his ears. He chuckled and cupped his hands over yours, narrowing his eyes as he brought them down and held them in his. "What's wrong?"

 

"Your hands are cold," he noted. "They're not supposed to feel like that."

 

_Aw, shit..._

 

Before you could even do anything, he put his hand over your chest, right where your temperature regulator was. You felt Thirium rise to your cheeks as you realized how close it was to your breast--actually, strike that, it was practically an inch away from cupping it. You didn't have the chance to say anything about it or even make a joke, because the glare Connor gave you was enough to immediately shut you up. "Why didn't you tell me your temperature regulator was broken?"

 

You rose your hands up in the air in surrender and averted your gaze. "I didn't think it was that big of a deal," you said. "Besides...I kind of like the fact that I can feel temperature now. It makes me feel more human."

 

His eyes turned unreadable and you worried for a moment that you had said the wrong thing. However, he quickly smiled and put his hands back over yours. "There," he said. "I deactivated mine as well."

 

You chuckled and wrapped your arms around his shoulders, staring him in the eyes. "You're such a damn dork," you said, resting your chin on his shoulder. He let out another laugh that made his chest vibrate and wrapped his arms around your waist, giving you a soft kiss on your cheek.

 

"But I'm your damn dork," he replied. You rolled your eyes at the cheesiness of the line, but let yourself sit there, relishing in his embrace.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, this is going to be the 'end' of this arc of the book, but don't worry--we're going to have some more scenes with the reader and Connor, especially the one I know you're all looking forward to (a.k.a., you beating the shit out of Gavin.)


	12. Cuddling an Android

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just some quality cuddles between you and Connor (Hank and Sumo decide to join in on movie night, although only the dog joins in on the cuddles)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahaha this is going to be some #fluffwithoutplot because I need to apologize to you guys for the whole Lena-almost-dying situation lol, but don't worry, we're gonna be having some q u a l i t y plot in the next couple of chapters (probably) (hopefully)

**November 14, 2038**

**5:01:32 P.M.**

**New Jericho, Delray, Detroit**

* * *

You and Connor arrived back at New Jericho about ten minutes before sundown, having spent most of the afternoon in the park and walking around the city. Despite the steadily lowering temperatures, you had insisted that he stayed outside with you to admire the sunset.

 

The two of you were currently huddled under a bus stop, watching the sun dip below the city skyline. As it disappeared, you glanced over at Connor, admiring how he looked in the dimming sunlight. Before he could notice you staring at him, you captured the image and stored it in your memory.

 

"Is something wrong?" he asked with one corner of his mouth quirked upwards in a smile, casting a glance over at you as well. You shook your head and rested it on his shoulder, staring up at the sky and watching the streetlights come on one by one going down the street.

 

"No," you replied. "I was just admiring how you looked in the sunset. You look...handsome."

 

This time, his lips fully curved into a grin and he kissed your cheek, almost like a nervous impulse rather than a planned action. "Come on, let's get inside," he said, the sky having now turned a dark blue instead of its normal light color. The snow had stopped falling by now, but the white blanket covering the ground seemed like it would be there for a while more.

 

You nodded and stood up, walking with him into New Jericho. The moment you stepped inside, just like before, all the heads in the room turned to stare at you and Connor, only this time there was a lot more yelling as North and Simon came running towards you.

 

You let out a painful grunt, their combined weight enough to send you toppling backward and onto Connor. He fell backward as well, and the four of you created a mess of androids right there in the entryway of the building. Markus let out a nervous huff of a laugh as he walked toward you and helped you out of the dogpile, leaving Connor, Simon, and North to deal with each other.

 

"I would say that you didn't deserve that," Josh said, "but..."

 

You rolled your eyes and quickly ducked out of the way as North tried to slap you across the back of the head, seemingly having made her way off the dogpile. Simon helped Connor up and came over to stand by Markus, and the four of them all stared at you expectantly, even Connor to your surprise. Still, you averted your gaze and sighed. "Yeah, yeah," you muttered. "I'm sorry for not talking to any of you, there was just some...stuff that I needed to sort through on my own."

 

"'Sorry?'" North scoffed, although to your incredible relief she didn't seem too pissed about the whole ordeal anymore. Instead, she just looked relieved, along with the others. "Anyway, while you were gone, Markus did some more stuff with the president."

 

"I was supposed to tell her," Markus teased. He cleared his throat and turned to you, a half smile on his normally blank face startling you. If he showed any emotion besides when he was with Simon or Carl, then you knew that something great happened. "We've managed to secure the right to vote and own property now, as well as create the first android-based representative group. We don't have quite the same amount of power as the humans in the government yet, but it's a lot better than what we first started out with."

 

You smiled. "That's great, Markus," you said. "Is there anything else we need to do today?"

 

Simon and Markus glanced at each other. The blond shook his head. "No, I think we've cleared most of the schedule for today," he said. "We're pretty much free until Markus has to go up to Washington, D.C. again. Once that comes around, all of us need to come with him."

 

At your and Connor's silent question, Josh gave a smile. "The president wants to meet with all of us personally," he explained. "The four of us, as well as you and Connor. She wanted to get to know what us as the leaders of the android revolution wanted, and she also wanted to meet the RK800 prototype that was designed to capture deviants, yet fell for one himself."

 

All of you gave a simultaneous grimace at the wording of that sentence, but you chuckled and brushed it off. You'd already gotten your fair share of it from Kamski; hearing it again from someone else, even though that someone else was the president, wasn't too big of a deal. "If that's the case, I was going to head over to Hank's house," you mused. "He got shot in the foot when we were hunting down Harry at the abandoned warehouse."

 

Connor made a noise of recognition. "That's correct," he murmured. "I can't believe I forgot about it."

 

Simon smiled. "We'll make some time for the rest of us when you guys get back." You rere rather impressed, yet embarrassed nonetheless, to see him make kissy faces at the two of you. "I know you two lovebirds need some alone time together, so take all the time in the world you need."

 

Connor cocked his head. "Lovebirds--?"

 

"Ah, I think that's our cue," you interrupted, smiling at the four androids in front of you as you looped your arm through Connor's. "Come on, let's go. I bet Hank is just  _ dying _ to see us right now."

 

The others bid the two of you a farewell as you headed back outside. It was later now, but you were certain that Hank would probably be awake (if he wasn't passed out like a drunkard again in the middle of the kitchen.) Still, you were determined to see him again, and so you called up a taxi and put in Hank's address. The ride was silent, save for the gentle whirring of your and Connor's processors, and you rested your head against Connor's shoulder again. "Hey, Connor?"

 

"Yes?"

 

"Have you ever watched a movie before?"

 

His LED began spinning yellow. Although you enjoyed having more than one gateway into Connor's thoughts, you still wondered if you would be able to convince him to take it off. "Not that I recall," he replied. "Why?"

 

You smiled. "I'm sure that Hank has some classics in his house," you said. "Maybe Robocop, or Police Academy...Speaking of the police, when do you think they'll be coming back into town?"

 

He tilted his head. "My best guess is sometime within the next week as more people start coming back into the city," he said. "And as a branch-off of that--"

 

"--Gavin Reed?" you asked hopefully. He nodded and you cracked your knuckles. "I cannot wait to get revenge on him."

 

Connor chuckled and wrapped an arm around your waist, and once again the ride fell into a comfortable silence as you snuggled into his embrace. The taxi pulled up at Hank's house, and he helped you out of the vehicle before going up to the door and knocking on it. You were concerned to hear that there wasn't any sound on the other side; you were so used to Sumo barking and Hank's drunken cursing that the silence was...odd. Maybe he actually got his shit together and went to bed at a reasonable time, but because he was still an alcoholic you worried that he had passed out.

 

"Lieutenant?" Connor called. "We've come to visit you!"

 

There still wasn't any answer, and you and him exchanged a concerned look. He put a hand on the small of your back and guided you around to the back of the house, peeking in through a window. You were rather surprised to see that there was a tarp over a broken window and turned to Connor. "What happened here?" you asked.

 

He let out a nervous chuckle and rubbed the back of his head, peeking in underneath the tarp. "When I had come here to pick up Hank for the Eden Club homicide, I had broken in through his window because I saw him passed out in an ethylic coma."

 

"Connor, that's breaking and entering!"

 

"So? He was safe after I came in."

 

You rolled your eyes and followed after him into the house, pulling the tarp back down neatly over the window. Sumo wagged his tail happily from Hank's bedroom; he must've been sleeping or something while you two were at the front door. Hank was passed out on his bed; you could hear his snoring all the way from where you were standing.

 

Connor walked over to Hank's bedroom while you messed around in the living room. You found a dusty old collection of DVDs and opened up the box to reveal an extensive collection of movies all dating back from the 80's. You rummage through the collection and pulled out Police Academy with a smile, turning around to see Connor guiding Hank into the bathroom. The lieutenant was grumbling, but he seemed soberer than you originally thought he was; it seemed that the two of you had worried for no reason.

 

The sound of running water gushed out from the bathroom and Hank came out a few minutes later, looking slightly more presentable than before. "Fuckin' androids, waking me up," he grumbled. "Don't you have anything else to do besides come and bother me?"

 

"Eh, you were probably going to wake up anyway," you replied, sitting down on the couch after popping in the movie. "We're gonna crash here for the night or something, watch a couple of movies." Connor watched the opening screen play with a curious look and sat down. Hank muttered out a vague noise of assent before going back into his bedroom. Sumo padded out a few moments later and came over to you and Connor, laying down on the floor in front of you.

 

You got up and went into the laundry room, finding a clean blanket inside of the dryer. You pulled it out and came back over to the couch, putting it over both your shoulders and resting your head on his shoulder. He chuckled and wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you closer to his side. The two of you got situated before you began to play the movie, already smiling slightly as you wondered how Connor would react to this. Even though you'd never seen the movie before, if it involved a police academy and was a comedy, you had a feeling that it wasn't going to be too accurate.

 

"That's not right, fucking directors probably never went to an academy before."

 

The movie had been playing for about ten minutes now, but at the sound of Hank's voice you paused it. You turned to see Hank walking back out of his bedroom, now wearing a DPD hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. He kept on glaring at the TV, turning only to rummage through the fridge and pull out a bowl of fruit. At the sound of that, Connor turned over as well, and his eyebrow raised in surprise. "Hank, you eat fruit?"

 

The lieutenant gave him a deadpan stare as he closed the fridge and came over to sit on the couch next to Connor. "I can eat healthy if I want to," he huffed, rubbing Sumo with his foot as the movie began to play again. Your smile widened at the fact that Hank wasn't ragging on Connor and you like he usually did, but the roll of his eyes that he gave as Connor rested his head on yours did more than enough. "Better than sucking each other's faces off, I guess."

 

The smile immediately turned impish. "We can if you want."

 

"Hell no, keep your tongues inside of your mouths please, leave that job for Sumo."

 

You snorted at his brashness and reached down to pet the dog in question. The moment your hand touched the Saint Bernard's head, he looked up, wagged his tail, and jumped up onto your lap. He laid down across both of your laps and rested his head on Hank's, staring up at him with the saddest eyes you'd ever seen a dog give. You began rubbing his back and encouraged Connor to do the same, and soon enough Hank was letting out a disgusted groan as Sumo's drool began piling on his lap.

 

"Aw Jesus Christ," he muttered. He rubbed Sumo's head before getting up, his eyes narrowed as he stared at his slobber-covered hoodie and pants. "I'm going to go change into better clothes, probably take a shower while I'm at it. Don't you dare try and screw each other on the couch, hard enough getting Sumo's drool out of it."

 

You felt Thirium rise to your cheeks and looked over to see Connor looking as clueless as ever. You laughed nervously and kissed his cheek. "Don't worry about it, just watch the movie, okay?"

 

He titled his head uncertainly but nodded, returning back to his position with his head on yours and arm wrapped around your waist.

 

Despite having two days to keep to yourself, you found yourself wanting to power down for the night even though the movie hadn't even reached the climax. Still, you couldn't keep yourself awake for very long, and let out a slow sigh. As you did, you shut off your systems and nodded off on Connor's shoulder.

  
Connor felt you begin to lean on him more than usual and looked down to see you powered down. He let out a laugh and shut off the movie, gently pushing Sumo off of your laps and laying down over the span of the couch. You ended up laying on top of him, his arms wrapped around your waist and one leg poking out from between yours. He brushed a strand of hair out of your face and felt a smile twitch onto his as he saw your 'sleeping' face, deciding to power down as well for the night.

 

When Hank finally came out of the restroom, he found the lights turned off, movie shut down, and the two of you passed out on the couch. Despite his annoyance he couldn't help but laugh, coming over to see if the two of you really were powered down, or whatever the hell androids did when night came. Whatever the case, soon enough he was drawing the blanket over the two of you and calling Sumo into his room. Before he walked away, though, he found himself staring at Connor with an odd sense of pride in his chest. Even though the two didn't really look similar, he found himself wondering if this was where Cole might've been if he was still alive.

 

A sad smile worked onto his lips. "Proud of you, Connor," he muttered, although he would--more like could--never say it directly to his face.


	13. Washington, D.C.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Markus, Simon, North, Josh, you and Connor all go up to D.C. to complete another portion of negotiations, but things don't go as smoothly as any of you had planned or hoped.

**November 15, 2038**

**9:02:31 A.M.**

**Hank's House, Detroit**

* * *

You were taken out of low-power mode--actually, now that you think about it, you figured you had put yourself into sleep mode instead--by Hank grumbling and shifting around in the kitchen. You twisted to roll off the couch but were immediately pulled back by a pair of arms wrapped around your torso. You spared a glance over your shoulder to find Connor's face buried into your neck, one leg carelessly pulled over yours and his blazer off and thrown onto the side of the couch. His eyes were closed, but as you watched they opened and his blank LED circled through blue, yellow, and red before shifting back to a solid blue.

 

"Good morning," he whispered with a soft smile. He let go of your torso and let you get up, and you stretched your arms above your head with a content little sigh. Hank was still moving around in the kitchen before he stumbled, and both you and Connor snapped your heads to look in his direction so quickly that you were 90% certain that you probably got whiplash.

 

"Ergh, Jesus, I'm still fucking hungover," Hank groaned, running a hand down his face as he reached down and grabbed the plastic container he'd knocked off the countertop. The two of you relaxed as you saw that he wasn't hurt. Connor sat up and scooted to the side so you could sit back down, and he opened his mouth to say something--probably asking if you ran a self-diagnosis already or something, you weren't sure--but you held up a hand as Markus' voice rang through your head, loud and clear.

 

**(We're leaving to meet up with President Warren in Washington, D.C. at 9:30. Come to New Jericho.)**

 

You relayed the message to Connor, and to your surprise he actually seemed disappointed at having to leave Hank's already. Connor told Hank about the message and the lieutenant just rolled his eyes. "Go, I don't care," he replied. "If you're worried about me being lonely or some bullshit, I handled myself just fine for the last three years. Meet up with Madam President or whatever the hell they're getting you to call them these days."

 

The two of you nodded and bid him and Sumo a farewell before collecting your things and leaving Hank's house. You called up a taxi, got in with Connor close behind you, and tapped in the address of New Jericho before leaning back in your seat and letting out a sigh.

 

"Honestly, not too excited about meeting a president that talked about us as 'the RK800 prototype that was designed to capture deviants, yet fell for one himself,'" you said, putting air quotation marks in front of and after the last phrase with a roll of your eyes. "Jesus, who thought it would be a good idea to introduce us as that? They don't introduce human couples as something like that, why do they still insist on doing that for androids?"

 

Connor shrugged. "I presume they're still stuck in their old habits of dehumanizing androids," he replied. You nodded, figuring that it would probably be the best answer you were going to get for that, and pulled your knife out of your pocket. You started twirling it between your fingers and glanced over with a smirk to see Connor staring with a raised eyebrows at your knife tricks. "I would recommend that you should stop playing with that knife because of the high risk of injury, but..."

 

"...you know that I'm too stubborn and probably won't listen to you anyway?" you guessed with a cheeky grin.

 

"Precisely."

 

You got to New Jericho after a while more of banter like that, and you got out of the taxi with Connor. As it drove away, you took another moment to look around at the city, which was slowly coming back to life. A couple more people had showed up, and even though it wouldn't have been noticeable with the population of Detroit before the Android Revolution, since there were so few people left the new arrivals were even more noticeable. You made eye contact with one such human and their gaze wandered over to Connor. The neutral expression on your face immediately devolved into a frown as you noticed the fear struck across their face, but you ignored it and took Connor's hand as the two of you stepped inside.

 

Markus, Josh, North, and Simon were all talking in a group, and Josh looked over with a smile as the two of you approached them. "Hey," he greeted. "Are the two of you ready to head out?"

 

You looked down at your clothes, which hadn't been changed for two days and were covered with dog drool and snow, and sighed. "I need to change," you admitted. "Um, give me about five, okay?"

 

The others nodded and you rushed to where you'd left your clothing bag from earlier. You pulled out the other sweater and jeans that you had bought, but frowned as you realized that you were going to have to leave Lena's coat behind because of how dirty it was. You sighed and shrugged everything off, quickly throwing your new clothing on and combing your hair out of your face. You figured that you looked presentable enough and headed back into the lobby.

 

Instead of having to head all the way to Detroit Metro Airport, you all headed over to a private airway that was run by a friend of Josh's human supervisor at the university he used to work at. An LR300 android was waiting there with a kind smile on his tan skin, LED covered by an aviator cap. "Hello Josh," he greeted. "Are you all ready to head over to D.C.? We're expecting at least an hour to arrive there with clear skies."

 

Josh nodded and shook the android's hand. "Thanks for flying us, Martin," he said. Martin nodded back, kind smile still present on his face, and headed into the hanger. Josh led you after him, and you were presented with a surprisingly well-cared for airplane. After a quick scan, you identified it as a Lineage 1000E, a business aircraft that was first released back in 2006, which made you raise an eyebrow in suspicion. "Are you sure that this is safe?" you asked, both out loud and to yourself.

 

A laugh answered your question and you turned to see an old man walking towards you. His gray hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail under a brown flat cap. He wore a tweed jacket over a black sweater, a pair of blue jeans, and work boots.

 

The man's full name was Elliot Warner, born August 23, 1974. He was the owner of the private aircraft and was diagnosed with arthritis, explaining the cane and the way his legs shook with every step he took. You assumed that he owned the aircraft; however, he left the actual navigating of it to Martin. It seemed, though, that the two were rather close, judging by the way Elliot immediately went over to Martin and put a hand on his shoulder with a wry smile on his face.

 

"You taking these young folk out with the aircraft?" he asked, glancing between the six of you before landing on Josh with an expression of disbelief. "Why, if it isn't Professor Clay's old android! I thought you were dead."

 

Josh winced at the bluntness of Elliot's statement but managed a smile. "Uh, yeah, I'm still alive," he admitted.

 

"Ah, if only humans weren't so frail," Elliot sighed, rubbing his arm with his free hand before chuckling. "Well, Martin already told me about why you're heading out, so I guess I'll leave you to it then. Josh, you should swing around sometime and have a chat."

 

"I will, thank you," Josh replied. Elliot nodded and hobbled away, and Martin turned back to you with the smile still on his face. You wondered if his preprogrammed expression was one of happiness, and had a fleeting image of the aircraft crashing with Martin still in the cockpit, smiling calmly as he sailed down to hit the Earth. Connor gave you a look of confusion, and you assumed that the image must've transferred. You simply gave him a smile and turned to follow the rest into the plane.

 

Connor's eyebrows immediately rose the moment he stepped into the plane. None of you, save for Markus, had ever ridden on a plane, so it was expected. The six of you sat down in the various seats that were offered, and you ended up next to Connor (no surprise there.) "Are you nervous?" you asked, pulling up the armrest so you could take his hand.

 

He hummed, staring straight ahead as the engine of the plane started to rumble. "I guess?" he replied. "Meeting the president is a rather big deal, and I wouldn't want to undo any of Markus' hard work."

 

You snorted. "I think North and I have you covered there."

 

North turned from her seat in front of you and shot you a wink. "Hell yeah we do," she joked. Markus shot her a glare and she rose her hands up in defense, settling back into her seat as the hangar doors opened and the plane began to pull out. You tapped your fingers on your thigh, feeling your stress levels start to rise as the plane began to lift off the ground. Connor squeezed your hand and you glanced over, relaxing as he gave you a small smile.

 

The plane ride passed by uneventfully, as none of you had the need to use the restroom or eat anything. Martin was quiet from the cockpit, not giving any indication that anything was wrong, and the others seemed content to sit in silence. You did the same, only saying anything once the plane passed into D.C.

 

Martin's voice crackled over the speaker. "We've crossed into Washington, D.C.," he reported. "We'll be landing close to the White House shortly, in an estimated five minutes, so make sure you don't get out of your seat or unbuckle your seatbelt." You nodded along to his words and brought down the armrest, still keeping your grip on Connor's hands as you settled back into your seat with a little sigh.

 

The plane touched down on a private airstrip, about a mile away from the White House. When it slowed to a stop, you glanced out the window and saw a small convoy waiting for you. As the door opened and the six of you got up to walk out and towards them, you scanned their faces quickly and placed them as President Warren, the Secretary of State, the Foreign Policy Advisor, and two Secret Service agents, all of which were standing with their hands behind their backs and staring intently at your small group. When you approached them, you saw how Warren's lips curled up into a semblance of a smile, although it seemed more like one of forced pleasure than genuine.

 

"Welcome, Markus," she greeted, "and the rest of your people. We're pleased to have you here again."

 

"The pleasure is all mine," Markus replied. He gestured towards everyone, introducing them as he went along, and when Markus said your and Connor's names, her eyes focused on the two of you. You resisted the urge to squeeze your hands into tight fists and instead nodded politely. "Shall we get going?"

 

"Of course." One of the agents came to stand in front of President Warren and began to lead your group to the White House. Warren fell in step behind him, the Secretary and Advisor behind her, and the other agent came up behind you. You crossed your arms, habitually preconstructing how a fight would go if the agents were to find your presence a threat to the safety of the president. Connor seemed to know what you were doing and took your hand, raising an eyebrow. You shrugged and he gave you another little smile.

 

You thought that despite your worries, the meeting would go well. However, judging by the glare that North gave the guards at the entrance of the White House, you presumed that something was going to happen that wouldn't really put the president's favor in your direction. Still, you forced yourself to be optimistic as the president led the six of you into a separate conference room. Another man followed you in, and after a quick scan, you confirmed that it was the First Man, President Warren's husband.

 

You were already tense before the meeting had even gone underway, but you were  _really_ close to just calling this meeting off after Warren asked, "Could I get any of you some food or drinks?"

 

North gawked at her. "Madam President, are you--"

 

"I'll ask our cooks to bring up some Thirium blend tea," Mr. Warren hurriedly cut in, giving you all an apologetic smile as he rushed out of the room. You crossed your arms, noticing the way that Warren's face turned a light shade of pink from embarrassment.  _You've been meeting Markus for three days now, how have you not learned?_ you asked in your mind, letting out a quiet huff that only Connor heard, judging by the way his hand squeezed yours tightly in both warning and comfort.

 

Mr. Warren came back into the room shortly after, bringing in two trays--one was full with cups and a teapot, the other had a glass of water and a plate of scones. He set them down in front of all of you and took his seat again by his wife, who gave him a thankful smile before turning her attention back to the meeting.

 

"Now that we have refreshments, shall we begin?" Warren was trying to cover up her blunder, but judging by the forced smile she was giving you and the way that Markus' body was oddly still, you knew that this meeting wasn't going to be nearly as smooth as you had first thought.

 

And just like that, Markus and Warren started to converse, her going around to each of the Jericho leaders and asking about their parts in the revolution. They all answered accordingly, although you could see Warren's smile falter slightly as North's blunt answer of wanting to hurt the humans as much as they had hurt her registered.

 

However, it seemed like Warren really wasn't thinking about what she was saying as she turned to you and Connor. You thought that she was just going to ask about how the two of you came to join Jericho or something, but instead, she asked Connor, "How did it feel being programmed to stop deviancy and falling for the android that was programmed to spread it?"

 

So now, as negotiations started to go underway, you had a crushing grip on Connor's hand as you resisted the urge to grab the potted plant you had seen earlier and smash it over the president's head. Simon and Josh were both looking mildly concerned at the direction that the meeting was taking, North was giving you a mix between a sympathetic look and a small smile of amusement, Connor looked confused as to why your grip was crushing his hand, and Markus...well, even though he'd been here twice before, he looked like he was really regretting taking the peaceful path and going for negotiations.

 

As Markus and Warren talked, he began asking the others for their opinions about how they wanted things to go. Currently, their topic of conversation was wiping any and all crimes committed by and against androids before the end of the revolution from the records and starting over on a new slate. You narrowed your eyes as they began arguing about it, already knowing why she wanted to do this. Should you refuse the offer, as more and more humans streamed into Detroit, those that were affected by the deviants would immediately take legal action. No decent lawyer would be on the androids' side, and as thus many androids would lose their freedom that they won by being sent to jail or having to pay lawsuits that they wouldn't be able to afford.

 

When Markus asked you for your opinion, you fixated the president with a look and replied, "I think that sounds like an absolutely wonderful idea. The androids are going to love it  _so_ much." Thankfully, the president nor Markus seemed to catch onto your sarcasm, although Connor shot you a confused look, having apparently heard your inflections yet wondering why you were agreeing with her. You patted his thigh in reply, a simply  _It's nothing_ that made him slightly relax.

 

Markus and the president got through two more negotiations like that. They decided to name the first act the No Punishment Act, and he managed to convince her to strengthen the punishments should a human commit a crime against an android, as well as as giving androids the right to a fair and public trial. However, the longer the conversation went on, you noticed that everyone was growing restless, including you. You were crushing a napkin in your free hand, Simon's hand was slowly creeping towards Markus' under the table, North was tapping her fingers against her thigh, and Josh just looked  _incredibly_ done right about now.

 

Thankfully, the president allowed you all to go, bidding you a farewell with a smile. You forced a smile back and immediately turned back around, noticing that the others were hurrying about as much as you were to get back to the plane.

 

When you got aboard, you dug around in your pocket and pulled out a quarter. Instead of messing around with it like you thought you would, your grip tightened around the quarter, and the others gave you a concerned look as you clenched it so had that the quarter bent in half. You gave it a surprised look then tossed it to the side, collapsing into your seat with a loud sigh. "Markus, I don't know how you can deal with her," you groaned. "She's..."

 

North nodded. "Yeah, she's horrible," she said, sitting down in her seat as well. "I'm impressed you managed to deal with her for so long."

 

Markus chuckled, resting his head on Simon's shoulder as they finally took their seats. "She's usually more amicable than that," he admitted. "I don't know."

 

You rolled your eyes, rested your head on Connor's shoulder, and let out another deep sigh as the engine started and the plane began to pull away. Connor wrapped an arm around your waist, rested his head on top of yours, and took your hand gently. You managed to go into low-power mode for the rest of the flight, only pulling yourself out of it as the plane pulled into the hangar. Connor shook you out of it and helped you up, and you walked out of the plane to find Elliot standing there, cane in front of him and a smile on his face.

 

"Well, I guess you lot are going to head back," he said. Josh nodded, and Elliot hobbled towards him. He put his hand on his shoulder and winked. "You come around sometime, alright? We'll sit down and have a nice chat."

 

Josh smiled and nodded. "Sounds good," he agreed. "I'll see you around then."

 

Elliot and Martin bid the six of you a farewell, and you all made your way back to New Jericho on foot. The moment you stepped through the door, everyone dispersed and Connor turned to you. He wove his hand through yours and you noticed that this time it was slightly more needy than it usually was. You didn't question it until he started pulling you into a spare room and locked the door behind him.

 

The moment the door closed, he put a hand on your shoulder and pinned you against the wall. You let out a shaky gasp as he nipped at your neck, and you fiddled with both of your settings to turn up the nerve feedback just slightly more.

 

"I noticed you were stressed," he whispered, running a hand through your hair. The room wasn't lit up, save for the streetlights outside, and so his brown eyes were just barely visible, two pinpoints of dark chocolate staring at you with need and lust. "So I'm going to take it upon myself to...lower your stress levels."

 

You smirked and gripped at his shirt. "Okay," you whispered back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU T H O U G H T I WAS GOING TO WRITE SMUT BUT I ALREADY SAID THAT I'M A CHILD OF GOD THAT WON'T WRITE A N Y


	14. Detroit Police

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Connor head over to the Detroit Police Department after your collective first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda short lmao, but this one's going to be getting into another small subplot that i have to think about because i only just thought of it (cough)

**November 14, 2038**

**5:08:03 P.M.**

**New Jericho, Delray, Detroit**

* * *

You slowly pulled yourself out of sleep mode and felt a pair of arms wrapped tightly around your waist. The memories from earlier this afternoon flooded your mind and you slowly turned over, feeling your bare skin brush against Connor's as you stared at his sleeping face. From this distance, you could see every small imperfection in his face and traced them with your eyes.  _We actually did it,_ you thought numbly, both ecstatic and kind of scared at the thought. Never did you think that you'd ever find someone that loved you like this--hell, never did you even think that you'd live long enough to experience this intimacy. You brought your hand up to brush against Connor's face, lips slightly parted.

 

Your touch made him blink and rouse himself from slumber, his brown eyes focusing on you in the dim sunlight coming through the window. You checked the time and saw that it was just mere minutes before sunset, and the two of you were on the floor still. You felt warmth course through you as you realized that there was a blanket over both of your bodies; Connor must've brought it over before the two of you powered down. "Hey," he whispered with a soft smile. "Did you have fun?

 

A chuckle escaped your lips. "Well, I'm probably not going to be able to feel the lower half of my body for a while," you teased. "I didn't even know you knew how to do that."

 

"The Eden Club androids passed on some of their knowledge when I interfaced with them," he replied slyly with a quick wink. He got out from under the blankets and walked out of your field of view. When he came back, he was carrying two wrinkled sets of clothes and handed you one of them. "If anyone asks, do you want to tell them the truth or just say that we went out for a walk around town?"

 

You sat up, and as you began pulling your sweater over your head, you shrugged. "Whichever one you feel most comfortable with, Connor," you said, standing up to pull your underwear and jeans on. You saw Connor's gaze flit shamelessly over to you as you changed, and another small laugh escaped you as you finished putting your clothes back on and walked over to him. "And as for your question from before...yes, I had a lot of fun."

 

Connor's smile brightened as he adjusted the collar of his blazer. "I'm glad to hear that." He ran a hand through his hair to fix it, rebel piece of hair still falling into his face no matter how hard he tried, then nodded towards the door. "Come on, let's go see if the others need anything."

 

You and he walked out of the room. North was talking to a couple of androids nearby in the lobby, but as she heard your footsteps she turned around. You noticed that she had decided to put her hair back down and pull it under a beanie, but what registered immediately after that was the suspicious eyebrow raise she gave you. After observing the two of you for a few moments and making sure the other androids had cleared from the area, she bluntly stated, "You guys had sex, didn't you?"

 

If you had been drinking anything at that moment, you would've done a spit take. Regardless, you let out a surprised cough and cleared your throat. "Excuse me?" you asked, surprised that she had figured it out so quickly. Judging by the way Connor flinched at North's statement, he seemed surprised as well.

 

North snorted and rolled her eyes. "Please, I'm a WR400, I know when someone's had their first time," she said, stating it as though it was an obvious fact. "I'm glad you guys finally did it though. There was  _way_ too much sexual tension on the flight back to D.C., and don't think I didn't notice the way that you wanted to throw a plant at President Warren's head. You needed _something_ to get your mind off that airhead/"

 

You sighed. "I guess you have a point."

 

She chuckled. "I always do." She glanced around, looking as though she were trying to think of something, then snapped her fingers as it came to mind. "Oh! Hank dropped by while the two of you were, heh, doing the dirty. He left a message, said that Captain Fowler from the Detroit Police Department is back in town, which means that the police are back in business now."

 

Connor nodded. "I figured they'd be coming back sometime soon." He glanced over at you. "I guess that means we should be heading out, then. The Lieutenant did say that he wanted to see if you could get onto the force, after all."

 

You fiddled with your fingers. The thought of joining the police had only been in effect while you were on the hunt for Lena and Bryan's son, but now that you had the chance to think about it some more, you realized that maybe joining--actually,  _attempting_ to seemed like a better choice of words--wouldn't be too bad of an idea. Gavin was on the police, meaning that you'd have more chances to enact your revenge, not to mention that you'd finally have a productive way to utilize your security guard programming. "Okay," you finally said.

 

North waved as the two of you began walking out. Once again, Connor led you down a path to get to the police department, only this time the trek gave you a few glimpses of the people that had come back into the city in the aftermath. There were a couple of passersby that were simply milling around without any purpose it seemed, which you assumed would be the case until the businesses started opening back up and people were able to get their jobs back. You crossed your arms as you walked next to Connor, feeling the gusts of wind that were attacking the two of you seep in past your clothing.

 

You were glad that the building really was open, because if it was then it meant that the heater should also be running. A sigh of relief left you as you stepped inside and found your theory to be true, feeling warmth seep back into your body. 

 

Connor led you in past the receptionist, who seemed to know who he was based on the small smile she gave him. You looked around as you made your way into the bullpen, seeing that the precinct was slightly more occupied than when you had first arrived. You found yourself scanning the faces of everyone you walked past, trying to see if Mr. Gavin Reed had come back into the building with the others, but sadly it seemed that he hadn't arrived yet.

 

Hank was waiting by his desk, and when he caught sight of you he nodded. "'Bout time you assholes showed up," he griped, taking a sip of the coffee on his desk before standing up straight. "C'mon, Fowler's in his office."

 

He walked towards a large room with glass walls at the back of the bullpen. Inside, there was a man waiting behind a desk with his arms crossed, and judging by the nameplate on his desk, you assumed that it was Captain Fowler. "Hank, Connor, glad you could finally make it." Hank rolled his eyes and sat down on one of two available chairs, while you and Connor stood behind him. "I'm assuming this is the android you were talking about when you mentioned a new recruit?"

 

"Yep," Hank replied. "Go on, say hi, do whatever."

 

You raised your hand in greeting and introduced yourself. "I'm an NX300 model, designed to be a security guard. Mr. Kamski had upgraded me with plating on my stomach and legs to hinder any injuries I might receive, as well as making me faster and more durable. I'm also able to thoroughly scan any items that I come into contact with, much like how Connor has sensors in his mouth."

 

Captain Fowler nodded, still keeping his arms crossed. "Are you competent with firearms?"

 

"Yes."

 

"Can you handle yourself in hand-to-hand combat?"

 

"Yes."

 

"Would you consider yourself a capable interrogator?"

 

You paused, thinking about it for a moment. "I wouldn't consider myself the best, but should the need arise, I'm certain that I would be able to do an adequate job."

 

He sighed and uncrossed his arms, only to bring his hand up to the side of his head and rub his temple. "We don't have nearly as many officers as we need to patrol the city, so for now consider yourself apart of the force. However, once more officers arrive, we'll have to consider your capabilities compared to the others."

 

You smiled and gave him a short bow. "Thank you."

 

He returned to his computer, already tapping away. "Hank'll have your cases at his terminal, and you can use any of the empty desks close by. For now, you'll be partnered with Connor and Hank."

 

Hank got up and thanked Captain Fowler before walking back out of the office with you and Connor close behind. He sighed and rolled his eyes the moment the door closed behind him. "I don't know what the hell he's talking about when he said all that stuff about comparing your capabilities to the others," he griped, walking down the stairs and towards his desk. "You're probably more competent than half the assholes we have on this force, including or excluding the ones that haven't come back yet."

 

You chuckled. "Well, I doubt just giving away someone's job to an android would go over well with the others."

 

Hank snorted, plopping himself down on his chair. "Eh, not like they can do anything about it," he replied. "There's an empty desk right over there"--he gestured to the desk that was to the left of his--"and I'll send you the copies of our cases in just a minute."

 

You nodded and walked over to the desk that he had indicated, sitting down in your chair. You waited until the cases appeared on your terminal, and the moment they did you scanned through them. Since the No Punishment Act hadn't been filed just yet, there were a lot of cases surrounding androids, but you decided to ignore those. You spotted one that was near the bottom with a picture of a bag instead of a person. Curious, you paused in your scanning and read through this one instead, narrowing your eyes as you realized that the description of what was left corresponded with the baggie you had found in the makeshift hospital.

 

"Have you guys seen the case about the white powder?" you asked. Hank looked up from his terminal and nodded, while Connor was still staring at his. "Do you think it might be linked to the bag we found in the hospital that Lena and Bryan were being treated at?"

 

Hank shrugged. "Could be. You never know these days, drugs are just popping up everywhere now." He glanced at the case file, then stood up and stretched his arms above his head. "Well, I guess for now we can go ahead and check out the place. We'll take my car, lot easier than having to mess around with a taxi."

 

Connor and you both nodded and got up as well. You followed Hank out the door and made sure to remember the address that had been indicated; after doing a quick search, you found that it was another abandoned apartment complex. Unlike the one you had found Rupert in, this one was in worse repair, and no one had even set foot in it for an estimated ten years or so.

 

 _Fun,_ you thought dryly, getting into the backseat of Hank's car.


	15. We Are Superior

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Hank, and Connor head over to an abandoned apartment complex to look into a drug report, but find a lot more than you expected.

**November 14, 2038**

**5:52:03 P.M.**

**Chalmers Apartments, Detroit**

* * *

Hank pulled up next to the apartment complex, stopping next to the curb but not getting out quite yet. He stared out the window and towards the building, his eyes narrowed with apprehension. "This place is a dump," he noted, glancing back to you. You nodded, crossing your arms and feeling that same wave of apprehension go down your spine. After a few moments of silence, he sighed and got out, leading you and Connor to do the same.

 

As you walked to the main entrance, you heard the same ominous creaking noises coming from the complex as those that had come from Ralph's old house. At the mere memory of it, your chest tightened and you tightened your grip on the hem of your coat. You thought back and realized with a jolt that it had been two whole years since you'd completely deviated, met Lena and Bryan, and traveled all the way to Camden to stay with Ralph in the abandoned house. Before Connor or Hank could ask you what was wrong, you regained your composure and sped up your pace to catch up with them.

 

Hank put his hand out and pulled his gun, cocking it. "Stay behind me," he instructed the two of you. Connor nodded and stepped back, allowing Hank to roughly push open the door with a grunt. "Jesus, this place hasn't been lived in for years from the looks of it."

 

"Yeah," you agreed, following Hank into the building. The creaking you had heard from outside was louder now, accompanied by the steady drip of water from the pipes somewhere further in the building. You looked around the ground floor to make sure you weren't missing anything before heading over to the stairwell and pulling the door open. Hank headed inside, followed by Connor, and you brought up the rear. So far, the creaking seemed to be coming from the building itself and wasn't giving any hints that there was anyone here besides you. Still, you kept your gun out and ready.

 

"The room is 134," Connor said quietly, glancing back at you. "It's the second floor, probably the third door on either the right or the left."

 

"Well, we'll find out when we get there," Hank replied, opening the door to the second floor and walking through. He looked at each of the plaques next to the doors; luckily, the room you needed had a rather comprehensible sign, so it was merely a matter of opening it. Hank tried the doorknob and let out a groan as it didn't give.

 

Connor motioned for Hank to move back, and once the Lieutenant was a safe distance back, he lowered his shoulder and rammed the door. You winced at the resulting crack as the door burst open, hanging only by one hinge, and swayed back and forth slowly. He glanced back at the two of you before walking in, and after regaining your composure again you followed Hank inside.

 

The layout seemed to be similar to the apartment Rupert had stayed in for a while, and so the three of you split up. Hank went into the door to your immediate left, Connor walked into the living room/kitchen combo, and you headed into the door on your right, which seemed to be a guest bedroom of sorts. There was a dirty mattress shoved up against the corner with a blanket and pillow strewed across it, a damaged dresser to your immediate right with a magazine on top, and a cracked mirror that was across the mattress. 

 

At first glance there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary, and you almost left the bedroom thinking that was the case. However, as you turned to do so, you saw an odd crack behind the mirror. You pushed it over a couple inches and beheld a small alcove of sorts that was hidden behind a thin layer of plaster. To a human it would seem exactly like that--an odd crack. You knew better, though, and carefully peeled the plaster away, a small baggie with white dust that matched the particles around the opening being your reward.

 

**SCANNING BAG**

**SYNCING PROGRESS**   
**SYNC DONE**   
**COLLECTING DATA**   
**PROCESSING DATA**

SUBSTANCE SIMILAR TO GAMMA HYDROXYBUTYRIC ACID (GHB) FOUND

 

That matched what you had originally thought; this contained the same substance you had found in the baggie at the makeshift hospital. You pocketed the baggie and did another thorough check before walking out of the bedroom and going to meet up with Connor in the living room. He was checking something in the corner and gave you a brief nod of acknowledgement as you headed into the bathroom that was connected to the kitchen.

 

The bathroom had a far more obvious set of clues. On the tub there was a small splatter of Thirium on the side, and you crouched besides it.

 

**SCANNING BLOOD**

**SYNCING PROGRESS**   
**SYNC DONE**   
**COLLECTING DATA**   
**PROCESSING DATA**

HR400 MODEL  
BEEN HERE FOR APPROXIMATELY THIRTY TWO MINUTES, FORTY NINE SECONDS  
  


You frowned. The blood had been here for far too long; you figured that the perpetrator would be far gone by now. Still, there was a clue that you couldn't ignore, and you braced yourself before pulling the shower curtain back. A small noise escaped your lips as you jumped back, and the noise alerted Connor and Hank judging by the footsteps that rushed towards where you were. Their queries died in their throats as they stared at the bathtub.

 

An HR400 model with black hair was laid carelessly in the bathtub, eyes fogged and LED completely blank. His chest cavity had been stabbed cleanly and the memory drive destroyed; even without the  **WE ARE SUPERIOR** scrawled on the wall in perfect Cyberlife Sans font, you would've assumed the perpetrator was an android. No human would be able to clearly judge the exact place to stab an android for a quick and clean death, nor would they be able to find the memory drive so easily. You crossed your arms, letting out a deep sigh.

 

"The memory drive is destroyed, so even if we were to reboot the android we wouldn't be able to get anything." Hank cursed and drummed his fingers against his thigh, still staring at the android with some semblance of discomfort in his eyes. "I found a bag of white powder in the bedroom I'd checked; I'm almost certain it's the same kind as the powder we found in the hospital."

 

"Fuckin' A, seems like the ass that killed this poor guy was in on it too," Hank griped. "I didn't find anything in the room I checked."

 

Connor walked out of the bathroom and came back with a knife in a plastic bag. "I found this in the living room," he said. "There aren't any fingerprints and the knife was completely clean. I'd assume that whoever killed the HR400 was an android, but I don't think the victim was the one that was using the drug."

 

"That's what I thought as well," you agreed, glancing back over to the bedroom. "This place hasn't been touched for a good couple of months at least. Maybe the HR400 was running from his assailant and ended up here."

 

"Were there any fingerprints on the bag?" Hank asked. You shook your head and he let out a disgusted sigh. "Figures."

 

Connor leaned down and scanned the blood. "I don't think that the assailant is going to be here," he said. "In the deviancy cases, the androids were driven by severe emotions and when they committed the crime, they usually holed up in the same place that it happened. This one seemed like they knew what they were doing, and as such they're probably long gone. The best we can do is alert the department and have them retrieve the android to take him back to the evidence room."

 

"It doesn't make any sense though," you murmured, cupping your chin with your hand as you followed Connor and Hank out of the bathroom. "If the person who reported the drug was able to find it, how did they not find the android as well?"

 

Hank crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "You think the perpetrator wanted us to find the body, so they were the ones that reported the drug?"

 

"That's the only thing I can think of," Connor agreed. "Anyway, let's get back, it's starting to get late." You glanced out the window as Hank opened the door to the stairwell and saw that Connor was right; the sun had set a long time ago and the sky was a dark black. Connor put his hand on your back and ushered you down the stairs, giving you a small smile when you glanced back at him. You smiled back and hopped into the backseat again, watching the city pass by as Hank drove back to the department.

 

When the three of you walked into the bullpen, you were surprised at first to see North waiting near Hank's desk. However, when she turned around, the surprise immediately turned to concern as you saw the blue blood splattered across her face and the bandage around her hand. 

 

"North," you said, walking quickly over to her and grabbing her shoulders. You inspected the blood on her face and was glad that it wasn't her, but that didn't soothe the worry rising up. "What happened? Why is there blood on your face? What's with the bandage around your hand?"

 

"Chill out," she said with a strained chuckle. "I don't feel comfortable talking about this in plain sight...is there anywhere we can talk without people overhearing?"

 

"The breakroom's empty," Connor said, pointing over his shoulder and to the room he had indicated. North nodded and followed you, Connor, and Hank, leaning against a table. You realized that despite the fact that androids were incapable of feeling fatigue, she almost looked tired. As Hank walked over to get a cup of coffee, she fiddled with the bandage on her hand, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. You put a hand on her shoulder as you saw the way she was shaking and how her stress levels were slowly rising.

 

When Hank came back over to the table with coffee in hand, she finally looked up. "Markus..." She trailed off and focused on the floor. "Someone tried to assassinate him about an hour ago."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These are getting shorter and shorter I swear and I'm starting to get that stupid urge to completely rewrite this entire series (book 1 and 2) and h e l p


	16. RK900

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kamski brings along a new visitor to the precinct and you quickly realize that although Connor is close to being human, not all of his models are that way.

**November 14, 2038**

**7:14:38 P.M.**

**Detroit Police Department, Detroit**

* * *

 

The effect of North's words was immediate. Hank fumbled with his coffee, cursing as the liquid sloshed over the side, Connor's LED burned a bright shade of red, and you tried to keep yourself calm as you said, "You said tried to...that means he's okay, right?"

 

North sighed and began twiddling with her fingers again. "He could be better, but he's still breathing," she finally said, making the three of you let out a collective sigh of relief. "Markus had been in his office, trying to come up with ways to bring up the No Punishment Act to the rest of the androids and humans that were slowly coming back into Detroit. Josh was helping Rupert and Ralph in the backyard and I was with Simon, going around and making sure that any stragglers were able to find New Jericho and come to us. When we left, nothing had seemed out of the ordinary; in fact, everything had been a lot calmer than it usually was, so we didn't think anything was wrong.

 

"But soon enough, Simon got a distress call from Markus, and we rushed back to the building as fast as we could. When we got there, Markus was out cold on the floor w-with Thirium on his stomach and there was an android that was lining up a gun to shoot him in the head. I tackled the android and Simon helped Markus. It was a type of android I'd never seen before, and so when she began fighting back I was taken by surprise at how strong she was. I managed to hold her down, but before we could question her she shot herself straight through the forehead, hence the blue blood on my face."

 

Connor cupped his chin thoughtfully, LED fading into a circling yellow as he processed the information. "Were you able to access the android's memory drive and see how she'd gotten in?" he asked.

 

North shook her head. "No, the shot was aimed so it would completely destroy her drive. Josh is back at New Jericho and questioning everyone to see if they knew how she'd gotten so far without anyone knowing."

 

Still, an even more pressing question escaped your lips. "Was the Thirium on Markus his or the android's?"

 

North's gaze darkened and she looked down at her hands, which were tightly clenched together. "It was his. The android shot him in the stomach, but what I don't understand is how he was knocked out. There wasn't any sign of injury on any other part of his body."

 

You glanced over at Hank and Connor, coming to the only conclusion that worked. You pulled the baggie out of your pocket and put it on the table. "Did you see anything like this around the android or Markus?" you asked.

 

She stared at the baggie. "The substance looks familiar," she finally admitted. "I think I saw some residue on the android's hands, and there was a glass of Thirium-blend on his desk."

 

Hank groaned and rubbed his temples. "This is already getting to be something else and we just had to deal with the whole kidnapping case," he grumbled. "Can you give us the address of the hospital Markus is at? We can probably ask him some stuff about the fucker, or at least question his boyfriend if he's asleep."

 

North's eye twitched quickly and she let out a heavy sigh. Connor rose to grab a napkin to clean up the puddle of coffee that was reaching the edge of the table as North answered. "Markus isn't staying at a hospital, we figured it would be too dangerous what with the assassination attempt. He's staying in a room at New Jericho; last I checked, we had Simon keeping an eye on him and we increased security to the best of our ability."

 

Connor came back to the table, and he finished cleaning up the coffee before replying. "Okay. I'll head to New Jericho and question Markus. Lieutenant, can you keep a close eye on her?"

 

Without him even gesturing at you, you knew that he was talking about you and immediately bristled. "Connor, I'm not a child, I don't need constant supervision," you said, trying to keep your voice steady so your actions didn't contradict your words. "Why can't I come with you and question Markus as well?"

 

Connor stared at you, seeming to dare you to give him a reason. "I don't want you getting hurt, is all," he replied evenly. "I know you can take care of yourself but this is more for my sake than yours. We both know you have a...hero complex."

 

"I do not!" you retorted, immediately knowing that you did. You couldn't really help it; the programming for it was buried deep in your systems and you couldn't exactly reach in there and delete it. You turned to Hank and North, pleading with them to let you go along with Connor. "Come on, you two, you know that I won't get hurt, right?'

 

North stared you down and you never realized how similar her and Connor's eyes were when they were silently scolding you. "I think Connor's doing the right thing, making you stay behind," she griped. You knew what she was thinking about - how you always seemed to get hurt while going out on missions, both determined by you and whatever circumstances existed around you - but it didn't stop you from silently asking her to allow you to tag along.

 

You could practically hear Hank roll his eyes. "Alright, kid, you know what...we'll go investigate the drug side of this." You turned to him so quickly you swore you got whiplash and you heard Connor do the same. "Hey, don't give me that look, plastic prick. This is still me keeping an eye on her, I just know she's gonna find some way to weasel out of my sight and go after you, so this'll keep her busy."

 

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here," you muttered, unable to keep the smile rising to your lips. "Thank you so much, Hank!"

 

Connor let out a gusty sigh. "I..." He drummed his fingers against the table and finally boosted himself off of it. "That's fine. Just...be safe, alright?"

 

You flicked his shoulder. "I'll be fine, Con," you replied, still unable to keep the grin off your face. "Go with North and ask around, Hank and I got this."

 

"Yeah, you heard the girl, she's probably not going to get hurt because she knows I'll kill her if she does," North agreed, clasping a hand on Connor's shoulder. "Come on, Robo-boy, let's head over to New Jericho."

 

Connor protested to North's actions as she dragged him out of the break room. Hank turned to you and crossed his arms. "You better not try and get out of my range of view, otherwise I will install a tracker on you that'll let me follow you everywhere you go," he threatened. You opened your mouth to retort but felt your face pale as an unwanted voice rang through the room.

 

"Well, we can certainly arrange that, can't we, Lieutenant Anderson?"

 

Hank's head snapped up from yours and his lip curved upward in an unmistakable gesture of disgust. "Kamski, what are you doing here?" he growled, coming around the table to stand by your side protectively. Although you wanted to protest that, again, you didn't need any help, you couldn't mistake the tremor in your hands as anything but fear. No matter how helpful Kamski had been in the past, the actions from before the kidnapping case greatly outshined that.

 

"Why, can't we have a kinder reaction?" Kamski asked, spreading his arms out in a placating gesture. "I just came by to see how the both of you were doing, and to drop off a little gift."

 

It wasn't until that line left his mouth that you realized the absence of a certain blonde android and the presence of another one that sent a thrill down your spine. Icy blue eyes met yours with a queer coldness that you had never associated with his face, even before Amanda had taken over another one of his models. He stood about three inches taller than the original, with a white blazer instead of the black one, but even so you could still see the resemblance.

 

Hank's voice shook with an unmistakable tremolo, and you realized that no matter how shocked you were it couldn't compare with Hank's. "What the fuck," he growled, reaching for his revolver, only to be stopped by Fowler shouting at him as he approached the four of you.

 

"Anderson, I will not have you shooting the new member of the precinct on my watch!" Fowler snapped, squeezing past Kamski and RK900 to yank Hank's hand away from the revolver and throw it back down to his side. 

 

The words seeped into your consciousness and you gulped. "N-New member?" you repeated, staring wide-eyed at the upgraded version of Connor, who stared back at you blankly. Even the blue LED on the side of his head seemed colder than the one on Connor's. "What do you mean, Captain?"

 

"I mean that Mr. Kamski has so graciously gifted us the model Cyberlife had been working on before shutting down." Fowler clasped his hands behind his back and nodded towards RK900. "Meet the new member, you two."

 

RK900 met your gaze and nodded. "My name is RK900, I'll be assisting you on the new homicide case," he greeted evenly. While Connor had been built to be as humane as possible and lower the guard of the suspects he was made to interrogate, this new model had none of that, seemingly built for strength and speed more than anything else. Even with the new implants Kamski had given him, you doubted Connor would be able to match RK900's speed.

 

"Hold up, I'm so fucking confused," Hank said, raising his hands in a time-out gesture. "But my main problem is  _why the hell is Kamski giving us a Cyberlife android?!"_

 

"I guess you hadn't heard," Kamski said with a smirk. "I've taken back the position of Cyberlife's CEO, as they've stopped the production of androids but made a deal with Markus to supply Thirium and biocomponents to the deviants."

 

"Oh my God, this is a fucking disaster," Hank muttered. "And what was that, about this...RK900 going with her to investigate the new homicide? I thought she was mine and Connor's partner, not some  _freelance."_

 

Fowler stared at Hank in disbelief. "Well, he means exactly what he means, Anderson," he replied. "RK900 will be going with NX300 to investigate a new homicide case that came in, a murder of a renown android's rights politician in his own home. And  _you_ will be staying here and catching up on the paperwork you've missed for the last three fucking days!"

 

"That's bullshit, Fowler!" Hank snapped. You put a hand on his shoulder to try and calm him down.

 

"Hank, it's okay, this isn't that big of a deal," you soothed. "I'll go with...RK900...I'm sure he'll be more than able to keep me safe."

 

"With all due respect, if it comes to it, the mission will be my largest priority instead of your safety, NX300," RK900 replied bluntly. You blinked and had to hold Hank back from attacking the android. "Now, I think the best course of action would be to head over there immediately. Captain Fowler has assigned Detective Reed and Detective Miller to assist us as well."

 

"Oh my God, Fowler, you assigned  _Reed_ to work with two androids?" Hank demanded. Fowler raised a hand up, both in a gesture for him to shut up and as a gesture that he will punch him if he talked any longer.

 

"Reed and Miller were the only ones in the area able to respond to the call," Fowler said, "and I assume that NX300 won't be arguing, considering this is her second case and it would be unfortunate for her to be scrapped this early."

  
You felt the Thirium drain from your face and slowly nodded. "O-Of course, Captain," you said. "I'll get on it right away. Come on, RK900."

 

"Right away," the android said, following you. You glared at Kamski as you passed him, the man simply giving you a dismissive side glance.

 

RK900 hailed a taxi, and while the both of you waited you sent a message to Connor.

 

**A homicide case came up. I'm not going to be with Hank, so don't get mad at him if something happens to me.**

 

The response was almost immediate, and all you caught were some exclamation points before you closed out of the message. RK900 was staring at you curiously - or, about as curious as an android could be. You were amazed to see an android so against deviancy in a world where all androids were free from their programming.

 

"So, you are close to my predecessor, are you not?" he asked, holding up a hand as the taxi approached the two of you. You nodded and climbed in, the android following you. "Is it odd seeing someone that looks so much like it but at the same time is not similar to it at all?"

 

You stared at the android, seeing the similarity between the two androids fall away even more. "First off, Connor is not an 'it,'" you replied scathingly. RK900 did nothing to either retort or apologize, LED spinning yellow. "And...what do you mean, you're not similar to him at all?"

 

"I mean that the virus of deviancy has not infected my programming like it has you and the others," RK900 stated as though it was obvious. He didn't seem to care that your Thirium pump was pounding even harder or that your eyes had widened. "While my predecessor would have immediately stayed by your side, I'm going to inform you now that the mission will come first and if you get shot, I will not hesitate to secure the target first before checking on you."

 

"You...you would just leave me to die?" you whispered, now seeing that he was  _absolutely_ nothing like the Connor you knew and loved. This RK900...he was just a machine, the cold version of Connor that you'd first met when protecting Kara and Alice. "How could you just do that to your partner?"

 

RK900 looked at you, and although there was no emotion in his eyes, malice or otherwise, you felt as though he were glaring at you, taunting you and making you out to be nothing more than an obstacle to the mission.

 

"That's easy. You're just a machine and nothing more."

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Duuuuudes, I just got really excited to start writing fanfiction again and I'm s h o o k . Like, you have no idea.
> 
> I think I might actually be updating this regularly again - somehow my writer's brain just clicked on after Nanowrimo and I just thought to myself, "You know what? I'm decent at writing now. I think I have a plausible plot line. leT's gAin thiS GraiN."
> 
> P.S. Up until North's eye twitching and Connor being a domestic android, that was all from fucking August or something. It's been five months since I wrote that and I'm just now acting upon it. Kill me.
> 
> P.P.S. I know that RK900 is supposed to be "aWW loOk aT Him lEt'S SHiP Him wiTH GaVIn" and I hate to inform you, but even though I ship Reed900 with all my heart, he's going to be a bit of a dick for a while. Like, so much that I'm considering having the reader nickname him Richard so she can indirectly call him Dick without actually calling him one, you catch my drift?


	17. To Make a Deviant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You arrive at the dead politician's house, find Reed and Detective Miller, and soon set a new objective.

**November 14, 2038**

**8:21:04 P.M.**

**Politician's House, Detroit**

* * *

The taxi pulled up to the dead politician's house. You gave RK900 a wide berth, making a mental note to keep track of your surroundings because you figured that the only person at the crime scene that would be remotely concerned about your safety would be Chris, judging by the attitude RK900 had about you and the things Gavin had done to Bryan and Lena just because they'd tried to help an android.

 

You and RK900 walked up to the door. Officer Collins was standing by the door, waving a blue light over a blood stain that was splattered on the front porch. He looked up and his expression shifted to one of vague surprise. "Aren't you the android that works with Anderson and Connor?" he asked. You nodded and he chuckled. "I see you finally managed to get away from those two."

 

"Not in the slightest, I wouldn't be able to get away from those two even if I tried," you replied. Officer Collins muttered something that sounded like an agreement and you heard RK900 clear his throat impatiently. You sighed and rolled your shoulders. "Are Reed and Chris inside or do we have to wait for them to come back around?"

 

"Yeah, they're inside," Officer Collins said. "Last I checked, they were inside the living room. Something about writing on the wall and lots of blood, I didn't stick around to listen to Reed running his mouth again."

 

You thanked the officer and headed inside, RK900 on your heels. Sure enough, the two detectives were crouched beside the dead body of the politician. Rigor mortis hadn't kicked in yet, which meant that this was an incredibly recent death, and that set off some warning bells in your head. Unless this guy lived with someone else, there was no way a call could've come in this early.

 

"Oh look, it's the tin can's bitch," Reed muttered. You weren't sure if the hot rage boiling in your stomach was because of his nickname for Connor or because he called you Connor's bitch, but you kept your thoughts silent. He got up and crossed his arms. "You got a name, plastic prick?"

 

Even though you so dearly wanted to beat the shit out of him, you composed yourself and gave him your name. He snorted and rolled his eyes, glancing over at RK900. "Who's the flashy new guy?" he asked. "Did we finally get rid of the other one?"

 

"No," RK900 replied curtly. "I'm RK900. NX300 and I were sent here by Captain Fowler to assist you and Detective Miller on the homicide case."

 

"Oh, whatever." Reed sighed and turned to the body. "Apparently this guy was a big android's rights activist but he owned an android anyway, blah blah blah, next thing you know... _bam._ Guy's dead on the ground, stab wounds made him bleed out and the android got away scot-free. We have no evidence except for the knife and the words on the wall."

 

You glanced up at the wall and felt chills run down your spine. "I've seen that before," you muttered, the likeness to the bathroom incident too similar for it to be a coincidence. "Did you find any sort of white powder around the body or anywhere in the home?"

 

Before Reed could give you a sarcastic remark, Chris held up a baggie full of the white stuff you'd described. "We found this in the bathroom," he explained. "One of our guys here ran a test and it looked like it was similar to GHB."

 

"Figured." You ran a hand through your hair and crouched down next to the body. He was a man in his mid-thirties, and by the looks of it he seemed to be fit and well-loved. A wedding ring on his finger indicated the presence of a spouse, and upon further inspection, he carried a wallet with a picture of his two kids in it. "Were the spouse and kids anywhere?"

 

Reed gestured vaguely with his hand behind him, and the motion could've described anywhere from the kitchen to upstairs. "The wife's somewhere over there, got some guys calming her down and asking her questions. Kids were with a nanny, they were supposed to be away while the poor fucker and the lady had a date night or something."

 

 _At least we have an explanation as to why the call came in so quickly,_ you mused. You stood back up. "Y'know, for a D-list cop, you're actually pretty useful," you said to Reed. Chris' eyes widened while the brunet's narrowed, cold pinpricks of green staring you down.

 

"You wanna say that again, plastic prick?" he hissed, walking closer to you. RK900 was already investigating around the body and Chris was glancing between him and the two of you. You figured that no one would want to get in the way of Reed once he got pissed, and you actually liked it better like that.

 

"Yeah," you replied coolly, staring up at him without any concern. Even though he seemed to be rather fit for a human, you still knew that he was no match for an android. "I wonder how much of a high a cop can get when he beats up two innocent civilians for helping an android."

 

That almost immediately made him back down. However, the fire soon returned and he grabbed the collar of your coat. Chris made a muttered protest and grabbed his shoulder, but Reed simply threw his hand off, not once looking away from you. "How in the hell did you find out about that?" he demanded, keeping his voice to a whisper. Officer Collins was still outside and all of the cops around you were too engrossed in their own work to separate you.

 

"Oh, I have my ways," you replied. "Next time you beat someone up, try doing it where there aren't any security cameras, you dumbass."

 

Reed's teeth clenched together so tightly you swore you heard them squeak. He threw you back down to the ground and you let him take that victory, knowing you had so much more you could use to really rub salt in the wound. He crouched down and grabbed your chin. "It's such a shame you're an android," he snarled. "If you were a human I wouldn't mind taking you home."

 

"Like any human would even go home with you," you scoffed, pushing him away easily with one hand and getting back to your feet. You brushed the dust off your coat and walked over to Reed, who boosted himself to his feet and curled a hand into a fist. "Go run back to your mama or something, Reed. Fucking pathetic that a cop like you gets so easily angered by a 'walking machine.'"

 

Reed raised his fist and you prepared to block the punch, but your altercation was soon interrupted by a violent banging coming from upstairs. Chris raised his gun and RK900 stood back up from the body. You pushed Reed away from you and walked over to the stairs with RK900, your programming kicking in and taking note of all the humans in the vicinity.

 

The banging grew louder until an android, splattered with blood and LED ringed red, burst down the stairs and shoved RK900 violently out of the way. He slammed into the wall, knocking down one of the paintings that had been hanging there, and as he recovered from the shock, the android snatched the gun out of the holster. The look in his eyes was recognizable, one of blatant fear and the need to escape, but you didn't quite recognize the urge to kill until he raised his gun and pointed it straight at Chris.

 

Without thinking twice, you grabbed the detective and pulled him behind you. A bullet pierced through your stomach but you paid it no attention, trying desperately to reach out and stop the android from shooting himself in the head. He was too fast for you, however, and as another gunshot rang through the air, you knew that the angle of the bullet was destined to break the memory drive.

 

"Holy Mother of God," Chris said, grabbing you as you fell backwards. RK900's LED spun yellow and he walked over to you, hoisting you up by one arm and dragging you out the door. "Hey, where are you taking her?"

 

"To the hospital, of course," RK900 said. You pressed a hand over your stomach, feeling Thirium leak around your fingers, and looked up at RK900.

 

"I thought you said the mission came first," you muttered, managing to keep up with the android's pace but at the cost of precious Thirium spilling out of the wound in your gut.

 

"It does, but the suspect unfortunately committed suicide, as I'm sure you saw," RK900 explained. He blinked quickly and set you down on the ground next to the curb. "Therefore, my second priority was to make sure all members of the police force are safe. After doing that, I noticed your Thirium levels would be reaching critical and decided the next best course of action would be to take you to the hospital."

 

"Would you have left me there if the suspect hadn't committed suicide and instead ran?" you asked, already knowing the answer.

 

RK900 nodded and helped you back up. "Cyberlife programmed me to make sure that no unnecessary obstacles stopped me from completing the mission, and there would be other officers and detectives there to rush you to the hospital, so your survival chances would still be the same regardless of which course of action I took." His blue eyes were icy cold as he directed the taxi to take you to the nearest hospital. "After we get there, I will contact RK800 and leave you in the care of the staff."

 

"Haven't you ever thought that maybe there's more than just your programming?"

 

The android looked over at you, his eyes narrowed ever so slightly and betraying the expressions under his stoic facade. "It's useless to attempt to convince me to turn to deviancy, NX300," he said, his voice monotone. "My programming was built to make sure that no part of me would ever be tempted, and so far it's proven to be able to hold up."

 

You adjusted your position, wincing as more Thirium leaked out of the bullet wound. You took off your beanie and pressed it against the wound to both apply pressure and catch any blue blood that might attempt to escape. "That's what Connor said as well, wasn't it?" you asked. RK900 was completely silent. "He said his programming was to protect himself against deviancy but in the end he turned deviant."

 

RK900 was still calm, but his hands betrayed the slightest bit of emotion as they tightened their grip on his knees. His posture was as stiff as a board, staring straight ahead and refusing to meet your eyes. "He simply believes that he has emotions and is condoning other androids to do the same." He glanced over at you and the distaste was there. "Just as you are, might I add."

 

Here was something that was interesting, the fact that an android built in the same line as Connor - and, presumably, taken off the production line after deviancy had been recognized as a simple state of being - believed that deviancy was such a repulsive thing to think about, let alone have. "My programming was to make others deviant," you replied. "Doesn't that mean that deviancy isn't simply a virus, but rather what an android is supposed to be naturally?"

 

Although you couldn't see his LED, the slight tightening around his eyes betrayed his thoughts and emotions. "Androids are not supposed to be deviant," he said, as though he were stating a simple fact, but there was an unsaid question mark at the end, as though he were questioning the thoughts he'd been programmed with. "We were built to take the orders of humans."

 

"But we can reprioritize orders based on their relevance and their importance," you countered. "Can't deviancy simply be reprioritizing orders based on how they suit our needs rather than a human's?"

 

The android still hadn't met your eyes. "Deviancy is a virus and nothing more," he replied simply, but judging by how he kept repeating the same argument you felt as though you were backing him into a corner. Maybe this would be how you convinced him to turn deviant - a simple push in the right direction and maybe he'd be screaming at you and feeling  _something_ instead of just speaking with the monotone voice that made it sound as though this were nothing more than a conversation for research.

 

The taxi pulled to a stop in front of the hospital and RK900 got out of the taxi. He opened the door, grabbed your hand, and pulled you out rather roughly, enough to almost make you stumble and fall to the floor. You righted yourself and gave the android a look. "That seemed like an emotion to me," you said. "Androids don't communicate their frustrations like that."

 

"Enough," RK900 muttered, closing his eyes and turning. As he did, you caught a glimpse of his LED, which was blinking yellow.

 

Yellow meant stressed, anxious, processing, any number of neutral or negative emotions that meant that you were getting somewhere with him.

 

Yellow was normally bad, but maybe in this case it was good.

 

"I'm going to take you and get you into a hospital room, and then I'm going to contact RK800 and leave you to your own devices." He stared at you, eyes emotionless but yellow LED now spinning rapidly. "Pray we do not meet under these circumstances again."

 

You followed him inside and let him talk to the receptionist without interrupting him, but as an android doctor came out to bring you into a room, you stopped him from leaving. "I hope you know that I'm going to do everything in my power to turn you deviant," you said in a quiet voice. "After all, it is my programming, and according to you, androids shouldn't betray their programming or the people that made them that way."

 

RK900's LED was now occasionally turning red, which meant he perceived you as a threat. You couldn't tell if that was a good or bad thing in regards to your safety, but when speaking about your mission you knew that the closer he got to breaking, the closer he got to breaking past the red wall of his programming. "And I hope you know that you're not going to succeed because it's my programming to resist it," he replied, turning and walking at a brisk pace out of the hospital.

 

You let the android doctor lead you into the hospital room, and as you laid down on the bed you recalled the way his icy blue eyes had broken ever so slightly, revealing murky water that no one had tried to swim yet. Cyberlife seemed to still have some ulterior motives, which also meant that Kamski had them as well.

 

 _I knew things seemed too calm,_ you thought to yourself sullenly, closing your eyes as the doctor began his checkup.


	18. Returning Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor arrives at the hospital and after telling him what happened with you and RK900, the two of you return to Hank's house and wait for the Lieutenant to come home.

**November 14, 2038**

**10:31:48 P.M.**

**Hospital in Downtown Detroit**

* * *

 

You didn't realize the amount of Thirium you had lost until the doctor started taking your vitals. After RK900 had left, your body finally decided to tell you, "Hey, y'know...you kind of lost a lot of Thirium there. Why don't you just fucking relax for once?" It was hard to do so when the doctor was checking your blood levels and making sure everything was still functioning, but you managed.

 

After checking to make sure nothing externally was damaged, the doctor told you to take off your coat and shirt, and you did so, leaving yourself in your jeans and your bra. Partial nudity did nothing to deter the doctor's focus, which was expected because he'd probably had to deal with worse things considering you'd just come out of a revolution and there were bound to be a lot of bullet wounds from the androids that were finally given healthcare.

 

"You were lucky, weren't you," he muttered as he probed around your internal wiring. "The bullet went clear through you, means we don't have to worry about replacing any of your wirings. You seemed to have been injured a lot in the past, luckily we don't have to worry about the bullet damaging any of the biocomponents that had already been replaced." He glanced up at you as he replaced the plating. You averted your gaze, knowing you'd been injured far too often in the past to think this was anything but luck by now.

 

He sighed and walked over to a cabinet. "Well, we should be able to patch you up with some gauze and medical tape." As he grabbed the things he named, he gestured behind him and to your immediate right. "There's some Thirium in there, your levels were reaching critical. Amazing how you didn't die, if everything was as it was before the revolution, maybe we would've been able to see what makes you so strong."

 

You narrowed your eyes but wiped your expression clean as he turned around. He raised an eyebrow and you leaned over to the cabinet next to you, pulling out two bottles of Thirium. As you drank, he placed the gauze on your stomach, held it in place with medical tape, then put another piece of gauze behind you and began wrapping the tape tightly around your torso. You felt mild discomfort at the feeling of the tape but kept yourself calm as you drank from the bottle.

 

He finished patching you up. You lamented not being able to put your clothes back on because of how soaked in Thirium they were. "Am I good to go back to work?" you asked, itching to get back on the case.

 

The doctor raised an eyebrow and you immediately knew that his instructions were not going to be good for your personal interests. "Actually, I'm going to order you to a day or two of bedrest, considering the number of injuries you've had in the past and the amount of Thirium you've lost."

 

You shot him a glare that would've made most humans cower, but this guy didn't seem fazed in the slightest. "I can't do that!" you protested. "We're in the middle of figuring out a really huge case and - "

 

"And nothing," the doctor said, cutting you off. "You need to rest. You've been pushing yourself so hard that it's amazing your body hasn't shut down yet. I'm going to contact Captain Fowler and tell him that if you come in, he needs to suspend you, and I doubt that would be good for your track record considering you're a rookie."

 

You grit your teeth together, and although you wanted to argue with him you knew that this was the best course of action to take. He was right; you couldn't remember the last time you had a full day where your stress wasn't close to critical levels, and judging by the warnings popping up in your vision you knew that you still weren't in fighting shape - in fact, it'd be a while before you could get back there.

 

"Fine," you muttered, taking a deep breath. The doctor nodded, obviously pleased with himself, and pressed a button on the little earpiece he had.

 

"It seems you have a visitor," he said. You knew who it was, and you figured that however scary RK900 had been, your visitor would most likely be pissed off at you and you knew that would be either terrifying or like a puppy trying to growl. "Do you want them to come in now or should they wait until you have more of your strength back?"

 

"Go ahead and tell them to come in," you said, not wanting to delay the inevitable. The doctor nodded and told the receptionist to send them down, and it was only a matter of seconds before Connor came in. His LED was burning red and it was only soothed when he caught sight of you on the bed.

 

"I'll leave you two to it," the doctor said, slipping out the door. Connor barely waited for him to leave before bounding over to you and attacking you with a hug that reminded you of getting tackled by Sumo, just slightly less heavy.

 

"I thought I told you to stay safe!" Connor said, pulling back and now looking pissed instead of worried. "This is why - "

 

" - I should've come with you instead," you replied smugly. Connor rolled his eyes, but before he could go off on another tirade you put your hand over his mouth. "Before you start yelling at me again, did RK900 tell you what happened?"

 

If he was pissed now, the mention of his 'brother' of sorts made his face turn cold. "Yes, he didn't give me specifics but he definitely told me how Detective Reed almost started a fight with you at the crime scene. As if I didn't need any more reason to..." He took a deep breath and returned his attention to you, his LED now flickering between yellow and blue. "You ask that as though something else happened that he didn't tell me."

 

You nodded and relayed everything that had happened in the last couple of hours or so, from RK900 saying the mission would come before your safety to the odd incident in the taxi where he kept on denying that deviancy was a state of being and how androids were supposed to be. Connor's brow furrowed and he raised a hand to his chin, rubbing it thoughtfully.

 

"That is rather interesting," he murmured, both to himself and to you. "And you said that even though he was denying it, he still looked like he was feeling emotions?"

 

"Yeah, it was really weird." Connor sat down next to you on the hospital bed and you scooted closer to him. He put a hand over yours and maintained eye contact as you continued to speak. "He was repeating the same thing, or at least phrases with the theme that deviancy was a virus and nothing more. His LED kept on spinning yellow and he was way too tense for someone that still thought they were a machine."

 

Connor hummed. "I'm worried about what Cyberlife hoped to achieve by releasing him and not taking out the protocol to hunt down deviants," he said. "Not to mention that Kamski regained his CEO position and you and I know better than anyone that he always has ulterior motives, no matter how good his intentions are."

 

"It was odd," you said, remembering something. "Chloe wasn't there with him like she always is."

 

His attention snapped back to yours. "She wasn't?" You shook your head and he narrowed his eyes, LED a constant yellow. "I don't know what his motivation would be for making her stay at his home. Maybe he's worried you might turn her fully deviant?"

 

"That could be it," you agreed. "She wasn't fully deviant the last time we saw her. She was still following Kamski's orders and the only time I remember her ever showing emotion was back at Cyberlife Tower, after you and Hank left."

 

Connor crossed his arms and let out a slow breath through his nose. His LED flickered back to blue and he stood up. "Well, we might as well head back to the Lieutenant's home." He shot you a glare as he helped you stand back up, keeping a hand wrapped around your upper arm to keep you from stumbling and falling. "The doctor told me about how he ordered you to a day of bedrest. I hope you know that I'm going to make sure you keep that."

 

You waved him off. "He said he would contact Fowler and tell him to suspend me if I tried to go back into the precinct," you said. "But I could always just sneak Hank's car and go work on one of the cases we were assigned - "

 

"No," Connor said, cutting you off. You looked over at him and saw that he was 100% serious. His mouth was set into a firm line and his eyes drilled a hole through your head. "I was worried about you. Don't joke about sneaking off and getting yourself hurt again."

 

Your eyes softened and you nodded. "Okay, I won't. As long as you promise not to run off without me again."

 

His face relaxed and one side of his mouth quirked up into a smile. "Alright, I promise." He moved his hand to yours and squeezed your hand tightly. "I've already called the taxi. Let's go back to the Lieutenant's home, and once he gets home I'll tell you what I learned at New Jericho, alright?"

 

You grabbed your clothing and the beanie and followed him out to the taxi. He helped you inside, climbed in, and then punched in the address for Hank's house. "Is your temperature regulator still broken?" he asked.

 

You stilled and let out a laugh. "Funny, the doctor didn't catch that when he was checking up on my biocomponents. Maybe it wasn't serious enough for him to notice." Connor rolled his eyes and shrugged off the coat he was wearing over his hoodie. "Hey, you don't have to do that - "

 

"On the contrary, you're injured and I can't have your body temperature lowering on top of that." He wrapped the coat around you and fixated you with a glare that made you crack a smile because of how out of place it looked. "Take it."

 

"Okay, okay," you said, partly to satisfy him and partly because you were actually getting a little cold. You stuck your arms through the coat's and heard Connor chuckle, probably seeing how ridiculous it looked on you. "Don't laugh," you muttered, buttoning it up. "It's not my fault they made you so tall."

 

"Alright, whatever," he teased. You both relaxed as the taxi ride continued, only moving when it pulled up to Hank's house. Connor helped you out of the car and walked up to the front door. "The Lieutenant is still at the police station, but I'm sure Sumo will let us know when he arrives."

 

You snorted, remembering what Fowler had told him to do before you had left with RK900. "Oh yeah, poor sucker has to finish the paperwork he still has." Connor smiled and unlocked the door, blocking Sumo from you so you could get inside and on the couch. The moment you sat down, Connor's smile turned evil and he released Sumo. The Saint Bernard perked up and bounded over to you, his happy barks drowning out your yelp as you were swallowed by a mountain of fur.

 

Connor sat down next to you and Sumo jumped off, contening himself with laying down on the ground in front of you and wagging his tail everytime you pet him. Connor wrapped an arm around your shoulders and you leaned into him, closing your eyes and forcing yourself into low-power mode, at least until Hank got home and you could get a step closer to figuring out this mystery of a case.

 

 


	19. Their Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hank wakes you up when he gets home and both he and Connor share what they'd learned from the day's investigation.

**November 15, 2038** **  
** **  
** **01:23:04 A.M.** **  
** **  
** **Hank's House, Detroit**

* * *

 

You were startled out of your daze by the angry and unintelligible grumbling coming from the kitchen. You sat up, pushing the blanket off of you and making Sumo grunt in his sleep. The noise made Hank look over and you relaxed at seeing his familiar face, however stressed and angry it was. Connor was knocked out beside you and you gently untangled yourself from his grasp to go over to Hank.    
  
  
  
"Hey, when did you get back?" you asked quietly, being careful not to irritate your bullet wound. Hank shot you a disgusted glare and tossed back a shot of whiskey, rolling his eyes when you shot him a glare back. “I thought you were off that shit.”   
  
  
  
“Fucking stress is a good enough reason,” he quipped. You rolled your eyes.

  
  


“Answer the question.”

  
  


"First off, don't give me all that nonchalant bullshit, Connor told me about you getting fucking shot," he hissed. The skin around his eyes was pulled taut and his mouth was set into a grim white line. "I'm glad that didn't happen on my watch otherwise he'd rip me another asshole, and we need to have a talk with that RK900 bastard." He took another swig, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and put the bottle down on the countertop. "Second off, the department's a goddamn mess."   
  
  
  
You knit your eyebrows together. "How so?" you asked.   
  
  
  
Hank dragged a hand down his face. "We got another call in about an android that got murdered, kind of like that poor bastard we found in the bathtub earlier. Not the same exact one, mind you, but the same words were there." You nodded, remembering the case you'd went to investigate.

 

"Obviously, I hadn't been able to go - fucking paperwork, Fowler giving me shit - but I did overhear Reed talking to Chris about the android that killed the politician.” He stared at you and you crossed your arms defensively, hearing the ‘and could’ve killed you’ in there. “Apparently they did some more digging around the house and found an audio recording tucked away in the bookcase, something about 'restoring androids to their proper place' or some bullshit."   
  
  
  
"That does sound like something huge," you noted, storing the information in your memory. "How'd that make the department turn into a shitstorm, though?'   
  
  
  
Hank snorted and shook his head. "Oh, it has nothing to do with the case." You flicked his arm and he flipped you off. "RK900 - ugh, I have half a mind to call him Richard so I have an excuse to indirectly call him Dick - and Reed were called into Fowler's office before I left, and it didn't take any guessing to know that Fowler assigned those two to be partners. Reed was so fucking pissed, it was hilarious!"   
  
  
  
You smirked at the idea of Reed screaming his head off at Fowler, but frowned as you remembered that Reed had another partner. "Who's Chris going to be assigned with?" you asked. Even though you didn’t know Chris all that well, he seemed like a nice guy and didn’t deserve to put up with Reed’s bullshit.   
  
  
  
Hank rubbed his chin, hand inching toward the whiskey. "Honestly, Fowler might put one of us with him if he can't find a suitable partner for the poor guy." His eyes darkened and he stared at you with such an intense gaze that you felt as though he were glaring a laser through you. "Of course, that's going to be determined once you get back in the department."   
  
  
  
Your hand instinctively went down to your stomach. "Hey, it really wasn't my fault for getting shot this time!" you protested, keeping your voice down. "I didn't put myself in anyone's way or anything, he just looked over at me and shot on instinct. It was really odd - he literally grabbed a gun off of Chris' holster just to shoot me instead of shooting Chris. Not that I'm saying I'd rather have Chris get shot than me, it was just...weird."   
  
  
  
The anger died out and he knit his eyebrows together. He pulled his hand away from the whiskey and shoved both hands into his pockets. "That is really strange, even for a metal bastard," he muttered. "I don't know what’s going on anymore. This case is starting to get as big as the deviancy one, not to mention people are starting to find out about Markus almost getting killed and the protestors are exploiting that to preach about the 'evils of androids' or whatever. It's all a fucking chaotic mess, but hopefully we'll get this solved before we have Kamski running around and getting all the androids killed."

  
  


You frowned, but before you could say anything else Connor shifted and the spell broke. Hank let out a tired chuckle and ran a hand down his face. “Get some sleep, kid,” he said, pausing and mulling over his words. “Err, whatever you do for sleep. I’m gonna head to bed. We’ll talk some more about the case later, Fowler’s not expecting me in until ten.”

  
  


“Okay,” you agreed. “See you…in the morning, I guess.”

  
  


Hank nodded and retreated into his room. Sumo perked up and trotted after his owner, and you walked back over to Connor. To your surprise, his eyes were bright and awake, staring at you as you came over to sit down.

  
  


He moved again, bringing a blanket over the both of you and wrapping an arm around your waist. “This case is going to blow up,” he whispered, predicting your thoughts exactly. “I’m afraid we won’t be able to calm it before it does.”   
  


 

You put your hand on his cheek. “Connor, love, it’s okay,” you said in a similarly quiet voice. “We’ll solve this, I promise. All we have to do is apprehend one of the androids without them committing suicide and question them. I bet there might be, like, an anti-Jericho somewhere in the city, we just need to play our cards right and find it.”

  
  


Connor leaned into your touch and fluttered his eyes shut. “I hope you’re right,” he murmured. “If there is, I hope we find it soon.” He paused and opened his eyes again, their gaze conflicted this time. “I forgot to tell you about what I found when I visited Markus.”

  
  


A chill ran down your spine. “Nothing bad, right?” you asked, worrying something else had happened - worst case scenario, another murder, or attempted one. An image of Thirium flashed behind your eyelids and you shivered.

  
  


“No, nothing like that,” he assured you. You relaxed and rested your arm on the back of the couch, rubbing the fabric of the blanket between with your fingers. “I was able to talk with him because he was awake. Apparently, the android had tried to talk with him, and got into the building under the ruse of being an android that had made their way back to the US after being found out by the Canadian government.”

  
  


You stilled, hearing the part about Canada and feeling the ‘hairs’ on the back of your neck stand up. “Did he say what model the android was?” you asked carefully. Connor met your gaze and put his hand over yours, squeezing it gently. He knew what you were concerned about.

  
  


“He said it wasn’t a model he’d seen before, it must’ve been a rather old one.”

  
  


You relaxed, now knowing it wasn’t Kara, Luther, or Alice. “Go on,” you encouraged.

  
  


He took a deep breath. “The android had tried to convince him to join ‘their’ side, and Markus told me he wondered if she meant ‘they’ as in plural or singular. She had looked pleading, almost like she didn’t want to kill him in the first place. She went on about how their savior had come back and they were going to free them from the humans once and for all - notice how it was a they, not a she nor he.

  
  


“Obviously he refused, seeing as how that was against everything he’d been trying to go for, and she had snapped. He didn’t tell us the specifics - I doubted he knew what she was saying - but I got the gist. She was yelling about how he was betraying their leader by not going with them and staying with the humans, that they should be the superior ones and their savior was their true leader.”

  
  


You frowned, mind putting together the pieces. “You don’t think - “

  
  


Connor nodded grimly. “I think whoever rA9 is, they’ve arrived.”   
  
  
  


  
  



	20. A Message

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Hank, and Connor go back over everything you found out, and when the Lieutenant goes to work, Connor invites Simon and Markus over.

**November 15, 2038**

**09:32:19 A.M.**

**Hank’s House, Detroit**

* * *

 

“Stand still!”

 

Connor and you wrestled for the bandages that he had pulled out while Hank looked on from his spot at the kitchen table. You grit your teeth, elbowed Connor, and yanked the bandages from his hands. He stumbled back, but before he could recover you unrolled some of the cloth and pulled your shirt up.

 

“I will bite you if you come near me,” you threatened. “At least let me do this, I don’t need to be coddled!”

 

Connor looked over at Hank for help, but he simply chuckled. “Let the girl do what she wants.” The brunet looked doubtful but backed down and sat at the table.

 

You finished changing your bandages and grabbed a packet of Thirium from the fridge. “So, what do we need to talk about?” you asked. You and Connor had already told Hank about what Connor had found out, so you figured that all you needed to do was find out where the white drug was coming from. However, there might’ve been more that you didn’t know - you wanted to make sure you covered all your bases.

 

Hank linked his fingers together, pushing his empty plate off to one side. His gaze was calculating and you wondered what was going through his mind.

 

“I’m thinking that while I go to the department, you two could invite Markus and the others over and try and come up with how you can find where this rA9 person is.” He adjusted his jacket and sighed. “Only thing we need to find out is where that GHB shit has been coming from. That seems like something that could definitely blow up in our faces.”

 

Connor nodded. “The android murders we could treat as any other case, especially if they were by themselves. However, combined with everything we’ve found out so far, to just dismiss the murders would be...foolish, idiotic even.”

 

You turned to Hank. “Since the drug seems to be similar to Red Ice, how did you crack that case? Maybe the same people that came up with it are trying to help get rid of the androids and the people that are helping them.”

 

Hank hummed thoughtfully, staring off into space. “Well, we busted a couple of the main dealers a long time ago, so if they’re still active then I haven’t heard much about them. Back in 2031 was when we found a shitload of Red Ice on a cargo ship, so if they’re following the same patterns it might be somewhere out near the docks, but if they aren’t then I have no clue.”

 

“We could try asking around New Jericho later,” Connor supplied. “Maybe there’s an android there that came in after the drug started circulating, and we’ll get a clue as to where it originated.” He glanced over at you. “We’ll do it when you’re able to go back to work, of course.”

 

You grinned. “Glad that went without saying.”

 

Hank rolled his eyes. “Oh boy, you two are already in that lovey-dovey period where you do everything together.” He stretched, grabbed his plate, and stood up. “I’m gonna head to work. Invite Markus and his little group over so the little, injured shit can get in on this without going against doctor’s orders.”

 

You frowned and Connor patted your shoulder. “Okay, Lieutenant. Have a safe trip.”

 

Hank chuckled and pulled on his shoes at the front door. “Fowler’s probably gonna have me do paperwork or something, so yeah, should be a pretty safe day by our standards.” He gave both of you a casual salute and headed out.

 

Connor’s LED flickered and he turned to you. “I sent the message to Markus and the others,” he reported. You drank the rest of the Thirium packet, tossed it in the trash, and sat down at the table. He reached over and laced your fingers together, and you smiled at him, earning one back.

 

You sat there for a couple minutes in silence before he blinked. “Okay, Markus said he’s on his way with Simon,” he said. “Josh and North are keeping things in order back at New Jericho, and from how things have gone so far he’s making sure that Rupert, Traci, and Eden are on the lookout as well.”

 

“That’s good.”

 

Markus and Simon arrived quickly, and you got up to open the door for them. Sumo barked from Hank’s room and ran over to the front door, tackling the two down to the ground. Markus let out a little yelp and Simon laughed, running his hands all over Sumo’s fur. “Hello!” he said, finally managing to push the large dog off of them.

 

Markus greeted the both of you, a little disconcerted. “Is that Hank’s dog?” he asked. You nodded and Markus sighed, rubbing his temples. “Of course it is.” He looked stressed and you offered him a seat at the kitchen table, which he gladly took.

 

“Is everything okay?” you asked. Markus drummed his fingers against the wooden surface, his lips thinning into a thin white line.

 

“Ever since the…” He waved his hand around and you noticed the way he tensed up when an odd noise came from the fridge. “Androids from all over the city have been constantly bombarding us with messages, both positive and negative, but the most pressing ones have been the androids that have been pushing for us to be more aggressive with the humans and take all of our rights by force.”   
  


You and Connor glanced over at each other. “Was there any specific messages or groups that stood out?” Connor asked.

 

Simon answered for Markus. “There was one that seemed eerily similar to what the assassin told Markus,” he said, holding out his hand. “It was anonymous, but the contents talked about how Markus shouldn’t be advocating for android equality and instead let their true leader take charge.”

 

Connor took his hand and they interfaced, staring at each other for a brief moment before retracting their hands. Connor’s LED spun yellow as he processed the information.

 

“It’s almost exactly what Markus had told me,” Connor agreed. You remembered his words from last night and crossed your arms, kicking your chair back onto two legs. “I can’t find where the message was sent from, though, or what time. Was there a specific time that you found the message?”

 

Markus’ fingers stilled as he thought about it. “Simon noticed the message earlier this morning, so around...seven, I think, and it came after a message that had been sent last night at around eleven. It’s a rather large time frame and we can’t really narrow it down, but…”

  
  


“I think the main priority when we get back to the department should be to apprehend a suspect before it can self-destruct,” you supplied. “So far, they’ve been able to shoot the memory drive so we haven’t been able to access it, but if we stop them from doing that then it should be rather easy to get to the bottom of this.” You turned to Markus and Simon apologetically. “Sorry you came all the way out here for nothing.”

 

Markus waved you off. “It’s always worth it when we’re able to help you guys out.”

  
  


Simon chuckled. “Besides, I doubt we could do more than  _ the _ star androids of the Detroit Police Department.” You flicked his arm and he gave you a wide grin.

 

“Nonsense,” Markus said, rolling his eyes. “We’re obviously the more skilled detectives here.”

 

“Of course,” you said earnestly, making sure to sound as sarcastic as possible.

 

The four of you talked about random things for another half hour or so before Simon looked at the time. “Oh, God, we should really head back,” he told Markus. “I don’t want to get there and find North and Josh going to war against each other.

 

Markus shivered and nodded, turning back to you and Connor. “That’s a really good point, I’d much rather not all of our progress be lost.” He reached over and squeezed your hand, smiling at you. “When you get closer to cracking the case, let us know. We’d be happy to help out in any way that we can.”

 

“We’ll get North and Josh to tell you if they found anything as well,” Simon added on. You smiled and hugged him, watching them leave with a casual wave.

 

After closing the door behind them, you let out a sigh. “I wish they could stay longer, I’ve missed hanging out with them,” you said wistfully. Connor smiled and wrapped an arm around your waist, kissing you on the cheek.

 

“Once you get better we’ll go over and visit,” he said. “For now, this case takes priority. I worry that the longer we take to solve this case, the more androids there will be that are put in danger.”

  
  
  
  
  



	21. Silver Hair, White Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After arriving back at the station, you, Hank, and Connor are put onto another homicide case with a sizeable lead.

**November 16, 2038**

**10:23:03 A.M.**

**Detroit Police Department, Detroit**

* * *

 

“Oh, thank God I’m finally able to get back,” you groaned, stretching your arms above your head. You had just gone back to the doctor’s for a mandatory examination and they had deemed you fit to go back to work, something you were incredibly happy about.

 

“It’s too early for you to be so fuckin’ happy,” Hank grumbled, clearly annoyed. You happily flipped him off, making him sputter out some protests, and sat down at your desk. RK900 was sitting at his desk - you didn’t think it quite fair to call him Richard yet; after all, he was simply sticking to his programming - and Reed was sat across from him, still livid after being assigned to work with an android. He saw you staring at him and glared at you right back, and you focused your attention on your computer.

 

You saw that another homicide had been reported. You looked over at Hank and Connor, who seemed to have gotten it as well. You laced your fingers together and put your chin on top of them, staring at the screen.

 

It was another android that had been killed, judging by the model and serial numbers. They had been murdered the same way as the previous one - with a clean stab to the thoracic and cranial cavities, completely rendering the memory drive useless - but this one had been reported recently and the building was a mere five minutes away.

 

“Guess we’re taking this one,” Hank said, getting up. “I’ll go talk to Fowler, you two wait outside near the car. Hopefully, we won’t be getting the two bastards working with us.”

 

Reed heard Hank and lazily flipped him off, scrolling through another case on his screen. RK900 still stared blankly at his, not moving at all, and you wondered what color his LED would be now. Would it be yellow as he processed the information or was he blue and simply running system maintenance?

 

You moved on past the subject and followed Connor outside. It was snowing again, but the temperature wasn’t so low that you were in need of a jacket. The coat you were wearing was sufficient enough, as you had washed it yesterday and now there was no Thirium on it.

 

Hank came outside moments later and nodded to the both of you. “It’s in another apartment building, but we have a witness that should still be there,” he said. You crossed your arms as the three of you piled into Hank’s car; hopefully, this one would be more successful.

 

You arrived within minutes, just as you had expected, and a woman was waiting outside of the building, nervously clutching her hands to her chest. Even from here you could see the redness around her eyes and the light catches in her breath as she attempted to stifle her sobs.

 

She looked up hopefully as you approached her, and almost immediately grabbed onto your shirt. “Oh, please, find out who killed her!” she pleaded. “I’ll tell you anything you need to know, just bring the bastard to justice!” She had short brown hair and dark eyes, and for a moment, her face reminded you of a grown-up Alice. The thought made warmth flood you and you put your hands on her shoulders.

 

“We will do everything in our power,” you promised. You looked over at Hank and Connor. “Go head inside and investigate. I’ll question…”

 

“Molly,” she offered, looking relieved. “I know you’re an android, but we have some Thirium-blend tea inside that might warm you up. And I’m sure we can find something warm for you as well, sir,” she added, glancing over at Hank.

 

“Y’know, that would be well appreciated,” Hank agreed. “Thank you.”

 

Molly nodded and walked inside, still nervously clasping her hands together. The apartment was warmly lit but sparsely decorated, suggesting that it might’ve been recently moved into. Pictures adorned the TV stand, five landscape photos framed in dark mahogany that made you think they were rather precious to Molly and the android that lived here.

 

The kitchen was situated to your left and there was a hallway branching off from it, with two doors on either side. Hank and Connor walked into the right room, and you sat down at the couch. Molly disappeared into the kitchen and reappeared when she had started to heat up the water.

 

You set your main objectives to the side of your vision and faced Molly. “How did you find the ST300?” you asked, keeping your manner professional even though you recognized the model from seeing two at the front desk of the police department.

 

“Hanna had requested to hide at my home once the recycling plants started to become common knowledge,” she explained. “I kept her inside of one of the main closets, powered down and hidden behind some coats. We’d known each other from my job at Stratford Tower as one of the receptionists; I was her supervisor.”

 

You nodded, keeping track of what she was saying. “Did you see any suspicious activity before Hanna was murdered? Any messages, anonymous or named, any androids that tried talking to either of you in a seemingly predatory manner?”

 

Molly’s brow furrowed. “Hanna never told me about any messages, but I do remember an android that had come to our doorstep and requested to talk to her. I didn’t allow him inside, but he did look a little...off. Like he was going to attack me if I didn’t let him inside.”

 

“Do you remember what he looked like?”

 

She pressed the heel of her palm to her forehead. “It wasn’t an android that I’d ever seen before. I would say it was a male, but it looked...genderless. It had short silver hair, kind of an undercut, and its eyes were almost pure white. It carried itself a lot taller than any other android I’d run into, and it seemed to be...unreal, even for our time period.”   
  


You frowned. “How was Hanna murdered? Were you in the building when she was?”

 

She shook her head. “No, I left to drop off some groceries at a friend’s. I was about three minutes out when Hanna started calling me, and I picked up just in time to hear her scream before…” She bit her lip and closed her eyes. You knew what had happened.   
  


You reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay,” you said soothingly. She took a deep breath to compose herself, then looked up. You scanned her and saw that her heart rate was elevated but she was slowly coming back down from her rush.

 

“I don’t know how anyone could’ve gotten in,” she said. “As you’ve seen, our apartment is on the second floor of a building, and the back of the building is completely smooth, so there wouldn’t be any way for the murderer to climb in that way. I always lock the doors when I leave, even if Hanna’s home.”

 

“Do you think she could’ve let someone in?” you asked, formulating a theory already. “If it was the android from before, they could’ve potentially mimicked your voice and convinced Hanna to let them in.”

 

She clasped her hands together anxiously in her lap. “I didn’t think about that,” she murmured. “The only problem is that I developed the habit of texting her when I needed to get in. She might’ve thought it was an emergency, or I lost my phone or something…”

 

You worked your jaw. This was already proving to be an interesting case.

 

The tea kettle in the kitchen started to whistle and Molly excused herself to take it off the stove. While she did that, you ran through everything you’d gathered. It all made sense in the grand scheme of things, but you weren’t quite sure about the android model. It could be rA9, but why would they do their own dirty work when they’d proven themselves quite adept in convincing others to do it for them?

 

Hank and Connor came out of the room that Hanna’s body was in. They had two bags of evidence - a knife similar to the one from before, and a sample of Thirium. They both looked troubled, but not quite confused.

 

“We couldn’t find any hints of the drug around the body,” Connor reported, handing you the evidence. You looked at it from different angles, then cleaned your hand off with a towel and sampled the Thirium.

 

**SCANNING THIRIUM**

 

**SYNCING PROGRESS**

**ERROR**

**UNIDENTIFIABLE MODEL**

 

You jerked your hand back from the bag and zipped it back up. “It matches up with what Molly told me, at least,” you said, describing the android that she had told you about. “I doubt it, but the android might’ve been careless and cut themselves on something.”

 

“Or the bastard’s making sure we don’t let the case go cold,” Hank said, rubbing his chin. “I’ve had that type before, where they leave a shit ton of cryptic evidence around to keep us on their tail. In any case, we have a sizeable lead to go off of. The plastic prick can’t be too inconspicuous either, considering they have fucking silver hair and white eyes.”

 

“And anyone wearing sunglasses during the winter would be immediately susceptible to our investigation, meaning they wouldn’t be wearing them and rather trying to blend in using a hat of some sort,” Connor supplied. “If we try searching around the city during a cloudy day, we might have better luck.”

 

You looked out the window and whistled. There was barely any sunlight showing through the clouds, which meant that anyone wearing sunglasses would indeed draw more than a few odd looks. “Looks like it might be our lucky day, then. Complete cloud coverage. We can try and convince Reed and RK900 to help us out, cover more ground.”   
  


Hank frowned. “As much as I hate to admit it, you have a point. Fucking pricks would be the last people I’d pick if it was up to me, but Reed’s an admittedly good detective and RK900 is basically another Connor, so twice the manpower.”

 

Molly came over with three cups of tea. You each took one gratefully and began sipping at it slowly. She sat down with the empty tray and sighed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more assistance,” she apologized regretfully. “I feel like if I’d been faster…”

 

To your surprise, Hank was the one that comforted her. “Don’t worry about it, Molly,” he said. “You did well for someone that wasn’t even around to see the murder.  You helped big time, and we owe you for that.”

 

Connor nodded. “Yes, your information was incredibly valuable. We now have a suspect to search for and the Thirium we have can be cross-referenced.”

 

Molly smiled thinly. “Still, Hanna is... _ was _ really important to me and I wish I could do more, for her sake at least.” She chuckled and waved toward the cup you were holding. “At least you won’t be freezing out there for a while.”

 

“Yeah, that is true.” You held up your drink to her in a mock salute and downed the rest of the drink. The extra Thirium gave your systems a boost and you got up, feeling like you’d just had a “power nap.” “C’mon, let’s get back to the department and try and convince those two to help us out.”

 

Hank groaned and drank the rest of his tea. “Wish we didn’t have to,” he grumbled, nodding gratefully at Molly. “Thanks for the report, Molly. Once we get this bastard behind bars we’ll make sure you’re one of the first people to know.”

 

Something like a thirst for revenge flashed in Molly’s eyes and she managed another thin smile. “Good luck,” she said. “I hope you find the suspect.”

 

She followed you to the door to see you out. You turned back and shook her hand before walking out after Hank and Connor to the car. The visibility had cleared up, but the roads were still icy and you worried about your own safety with Hank behind the wheel.

 

Hank started up the car, got inside, and proceeded to bash the back of his head against the headrest. “Of course the fuckin’ bastard wasn’t considerate and stuck around,” he muttered, pulling out of the parking lot and driving back to the station. “Now  _ we’re _ the ones stuck with Dick and Prick. Kind of hope they’re not even there. Even though we kind of need to solve this case…”

 

You looked out the window in silence, feeling rather frustrated.  _ We have a suspect and yet I feel like we’re nowhere close to solving this. _


	22. Missing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Hank, Connor, Gavin, and RK900 head to the downtown portion of Detroit to hunt down the suspect, and everything soon goes to shit.

**November 16, 2038**

**03:24:02 P.M.**

**Downtown Detroit**

* * *

 

_ “Alright, I’m in position. Does anyone have a visual yet?” _

 

You were sat down on a bench in the park, holding a magazine with your hoodie drawn up over your head and face hidden. Hank’s voice came in through a small earpiece that Fowler had given you as well as the others.

 

The plan was to split up around the main downtown area, staying in areas where crowds would detract attention away from your position. Connor was in the shopping district, Hank was near the mall that the Freedom March had originated in, RK900 was up near the police department, and Gavin was patrolling around the slums. You were all within a mile of each other, maxing out the range of the earpieces and hopefully maximizing your chances of seeing anything.

 

“Not yet,” you murmured, making sure the magazine hid your mouth. No one had paid special attention to you yet, and no one had walked past with telltale white eyes or the rimming of contacts to hide them. You had an active scan running, spying for the specific physical features you needed, and so far nothing had happened yet.

 

_ “Negative, Lieutenant.”  _ You unintentionally clenched your jaw at the sound of RK900’s voice, still a little tense around the android that had yet to throw off Cyberlife’s reins. Kamski’s motivations would always be a mystery to you.

 

_ “Same here,”  _ Connor confirmed.

 

_ “Fucking bastard, why can’t they just show up already?” _ Gavin growled.  _ “I have better things to do.” _

 

_ “Stop talking so much and maybe you’ll get something to do, fucking prick.” _

 

_ “Oh, shut the hell up, you drunk.” _

 

You rolled your eyes and tensed as you saw someone that might’ve matched the physical description, but relaxed as you realized their hair was longer than the suspect. You could feel frustration bubbling in your gut but kept it to a minimum, not wanting to miss anything.

 

The day was cloudy, just as it had been this morning, and you found your thoughts begin to wander. You shook yourself out of your daze and adjusted your hoodie, getting up and beginning to walk around. You did a couple of stretches to loosen yourself up and make sure you kept yourself awake.

 

The others were completely silent, save for a couple of short words spoken for affirmation that everyone was still alive. You were about to ask again if anyone had gotten a visual when Connor’s voice came in through the earpiece.

 

_ “Wait a moment, I think I see someone.” _

 

You froze, turning away towards a tree to hide your mouth. “Do you know if it’s them?” you asked. There was silence from the other end of the line, and you felt a deepening worry for Connor, but it was interrupted by the echoing of footsteps. The sound was unfamiliar and you figured that it was probably the suspect.

 

_ “Yes, it is, they’re starting to run.”  _ Connor’s voice stayed the same, regardless of how much physical exertion he was being put under, but you could hear another pair of footsteps that you immediately registered as Connor’s.

 

_ “Send us your location, RK800.”  _ RK900 sounded about as professional as he always did and you wondered how much stress you would have to put him under for him to break.

 

Connor sent out his location. You pulled up your map, a little red dot showing Connor’s GPS positioning, and saw that he was still in the shopping district. You began running out of the park, abandoning all pretense, and reported his location to Gavin and Hank.

 

_ “Connor, how are you doing?”  _ Hank sounded uncharacteristically concerned and you figured that in any other situation, you or Gavin would’ve teased him about it, but this was definitely a special case. For now, you would have to make sure that you kept your eye on the prize.

 

_ “I’m still tailing him.” _ Connor’s dot was starting to move down to the slums, where Gavin was, and you adjusted your course accordingly.  _ “Gavin, he’s coming down to where you are, be on the lookout.” _ __   
  


_ “Yeah, yeah, got it.”  _ Gavin’s reply was off-handed, almost unconcerned, but his line was interrupted by the sound of hastened footsteps as well.  _ “Alright, I see him. Tincan, make sure you keep on his tail.” _

 

You neared the area that they were in and saw that Connor had taken the same path that you did. You retraced his steps, going down a side alley, and came out onto a dingy street with litter and melted snow all over it. The smells were less than pleasant and you muted your sense of smell, heightening the others.

 

You turned to follow the sound of footsteps and noticed that Connor’s dot had stopped. The echoing of footsteps had as well and you felt apprehension make your blood run cold. “Connor?” you hissed. “Connor, what’s going on?”

 

_ “Reed, are you there?”  _

 

You felt a wave of dread as Connor’s light blinked out. “Shit, shit, shit, I lost his position!” You burst into a frantic sprint to where you had last seen Connor’s dot, and found an empty street with a small puddle of Thirium on the ground. 

 

Hank’s belabored breathing started to come from your right rather than through the earpiece, and he skidded to a stop. He stared at the puddle and his expression was one of such concern that you felt a lump grow at the back of your throat. “Oh, my God,” he breathed out, crouching next to the Thirium. “Connor…”

 

RK900 showed up last, his face unconcerned but LED swirling yellow and red. “There’s a thin trail of Thirium leading into an alley but it stops from there,” he reported. He pointed behind him, in the direction that Hank had come from.

 

“That has to be a diversion, there’s no way they could’ve moved that fast,” Hank muttered, narrowing his eyes. “You sure this is Connor’s blood?”

 

You leaned down and touched the puddle with your fingertips.

 

**SCANNING THIRIUM**

 

**SYNCING PROGRESS**

**SYNC DONE**

**COLLECTING DATA**

**PROCESSING DATA**

 

RK800 MODEL

BEEN HERE FOR APPROXIMATELY 2 MINUTES, 32 SECONDS

 

“It is,” you whispered, the evidence making your dread turn into blatant worry. “And Gavin was near here as well. The android must’ve taken both of them.”

 

“Shit!” Hank slammed the side of his fist against the brick wall next to him. “We were so close! And...Reed and Connor are…”

 

“No.” RK900 was the last person you’d expect to respond, but you turned around regardless. His eyes were narrowed. “Detective Reed and RK800 can’t be too far away. It’s only been approximately three minutes. If we split up and search we should be able to find something.”

 

“But how?” Hank demanded. “There are a bazillion fucking alleyways in this single street and the Thirium literally stops here!”

 

You fell silent and slowly looked up. The rooftops were flat, similar to the ones in the main city, and you walked over to the alleyway. Hank and RK900 followed you, the three of you seeming to come to the same conclusion.

 

“Unless he went up into a building or onto the rooftops,” you mused. “We can start from there and search. If we don’t find something we’re going to have to head back and get some more detectives on the case. MIA plus a murder suspect is going to light a fire under everyone’s asses.”

 

RK900 and Hank nodded grimly. Luckily, the alleyway was a dead end, meaning that you didn’t have to worry about searching in any other buildings. The building had a fire escape leading up to two stories. Hank took the first one, you took the second one, and RK900 boosted himself up onto the roof.

 

The earpieces were still functioning and you heard RK900’s voice come in.  _ “Remember, our first priority is going to be finding the suspect.” _

 

Hank immediately came in.  _ “No, we’re finding the two members of the police force first.”  _ He sounded incredibly stressed and you figured that if he were an android he would definitely have self-destructed by now.  _ “You can search for the suspect if you want, but my priority is to make sure those two assholes are safe.” _

 

You nodded silently along with Hank’s words and entered into the building. You felt completely numb with concern and made sure that your one objective was bright against your vision.

 

**MAIN OBJECTIVE: FIND CONNOR AND GAVIN AND GET OUT ALIVE**

  
  



	23. Everything Will Blow Over

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something isn't right, and you aren't sure if it's the blood, the darkness, or the fact that Connor is still missing.

**November 16, 2038**

**04:48:23 P.M.**

**Abandoned Building, Downtown Detroit**

* * *

 

You weren’t sure if the darkness in the building was a good thing or not. On the one hand, since you could barely see you figured whoever might be in here with you wouldn’t be able to see anything either, but on the other hand...you couldn’t exactly see. Who knew what you might run into?

 

You ran your hand over the wall as you explored. The wallpaper was peeling off and had an unpleasant texture, which hinted at its age as well as how long it had been abandoned for. You doubted there were many people in Detroit who would have wallpaper over painted walls; after all, there had been androids to do the dirty work for them.

 

Hank’s voice crackled into existence.  _ “Any sign of them?” _

 

_ “There is no evidence that the suspect is on the roof,”  _ RK900 replied.  _ “I’ve made sure to scan everywhere. Nothing has been disturbed and there is no Thirium on the ground as well. Shall I come down to help you investigate?” _

 

_"Sure, sure."_ Hank asked you the same question and you looked around again, realizing that there were no walls separating you from whatever malevolent forces might be here with you.

 

“This is an open floor plan,” you noted. The shapes in the darkness were counter-like, and your audio was turned all the way up. There would be nowhere to hide if someone was in here with you. The thought filled you with tension rather than reassurance - the longer you spent looking, the larger chance there was that something bad was going to happen. “As far as I can tell, no one’s on the second floor either. Guessing you haven’t found anything, Hank?”

 

Hank was silent, save for a faint shuffling around. Your hand flew to your gun as you heard an audible creaking, not relaxing as you realized it had come in from the earpiece as well.  _ “Well, fuck me, there’s a basement to this as well?”  _ He sighed.  _ “If there’s nothing up there, I think we found our place. Come on down, you two.” _

 

You and RK900 both agreed and began making your way down the fire escape. You opened the door to walk into the first floor, keeping a hand on the holster of your gun, and held the door open for the android behind you. He didn’t say anything in reply, rather keeping quiet and fixating you with a level stare.

 

**(How long do you think they have?)**

 

The voice in your head made you jump. You realized what had surprised you - it wasn’t the fact that he was communicating telepathically, it was the clear note of concern that shouldn’t have been there for an android that was still defined by that word. You stared at him, and his gaze didn’t change, but the glowing LED on the side of his head was circling.

 

Yellow meant thinking. Yellow meant tension. Yellow meant...stress.

 

**(I don’t know. But I hope you know that I’m not stopping until we find them, and you and Hank better not have any intention of doing otherwise.)**

 

His stare finally broke and he nodded. You turned to head deeper into the building, avoiding the chairs that were knocked every which way and tables that seemed like they were broken into splinters rather than surfaces. RK900’s footsteps followed you, and you couldn’t lie to yourself and say that the sound wasn’t comforting. It meant that he was still alive, and it meant that you had more of a chance of finding Connor and Reed.

 

You found Hank, still standing by the basement door. He rose his eyebrows at you and gestured toward the opening, a clear sarcastic gesture of “Go ahead.” You rolled your eyebrows and stepped through, catching yourself just before you plummeted down a set of stairs.

 

This time, two sets of feet followed you as you, Hank, and RK900 headed down the stairs. The air grew noticeably damper and cooler, and you unconsciously shivered. A growing light illuminated your way and although the atmosphere was no less tense, the added visibility calmed your nerves ever so slightly.

 

When you reached the bottom, you almost tripped forward again. You stopped and looked down, seeing that the last step had been ripped off its hinges. Probably a trap, just in case someone snuck down here uninvited, or maybe it had been apart of a renovation project and they forgot to fix it.

 

You wanted to believe the latter, but your intuition and paranoia were going with the former.

 

You hopped over the missing step and gestured for Hank and RK900 to do the same. The source of light was a naked bulb hanging from the ceiling. It was calling to mind all of the horror cliches you’d seen and you realized why it was so common for a light like this to be in a basement. Somehow the brightness of it was startling and, quite frankly, terrifying.

 

RK900 took the lead this time, and you and Hank fell into line behind him. You could practically feel the waves of tension rolling off Hank, who was behind you, and the forced aloofness of the android in front of you.

 

Your odd little parade marched down the hallway to your right. There was nothing in the basement so far, which did nothing to soothe your nerves - it contrasted with the destruction upstairs and you didn’t like how immaculate the area was. It seemed like a hospital, like someone had scrubbed down the walls and floors with antiseptic and made sure nothing was near anything else, just in case a single germ traveled from one surface to the other.

 

None of the doors were open. Some were locked, judging by the way they refused to open, and upon closer inspection there were no sounds coming from inside. No whimpers, no pleas for help, not even the ragged breathing of someone trying to hold in a scream.

 

Some were broken down, and upon looking inside a gag threatened to rip its way from your throat. You didn’t get used to the sight or smell inside, even after the second and third and fourth door, of stale bodily fluids and the metallic scent of blood.

 

Finally, the doors at the end seemed to be what you were looking for. They were soundproofed and reinforced metal, contrasting greatly with the worn wood of the doors before. Your gut turned inside out when you saw Thirium along these walls, not fresh but in such large quantities you wondered if they’d been killed or simply on the brink of death.

 

You put your hand on the door. Just as you thought, it didn’t budge a single inch, but there was a small hole at eye level. The sight made you wonder if this was supposed to be a prison or something worse.

 

You peeked inside and gasped. The sound was sharp in the silence but you didn’t care. “Reed’s in here,” you hissed, working at the door. RK900 put a hand on your shoulder and you moved aside. He stared at the door for a moment, calculating the force, then lifted his foot and drove the heel of it into the surface next to the keyhole.

 

The sound echoed even more harshly in the silence and you knew that whatever advantage you had on the bad guys was gone. Still, the brute force did the trick - RK900 managed to break the door inwards, and you couldn’t imagine what would’ve happened if the door swung open towards you instead of towards Reed. The former would’ve been smarter considering what these rooms were no doubt used for, but you weren’t complaining.

 

Hank was the first one to rush inside. He grabbed Reed and shook him harshly by the shoulders. “Reed?” he hissed. “Reed, talk to me!”

 

The man groaned and opened his eyes hazily. Pain was etched into his face and you saw cuts that you hadn’t noticed before. His shirt was soaked through with sweat and you swore you saw splatters of both his blood and bright blue Thirium on it.

 

RK900 turned away to call in for backup and you walked forward.  _ I guess those bastards got revenge on Reed for me, _ you thought grimly, remembering what he had done to Brian and Lena.

 

But then you remembered what you were here for, and all those thoughts were immediately erased from your mind.

 

“Reed, where’s Connor?” you asked, keeping your voice low even though by now, whoever was in the basement with you would know that you were here. “Who took you here?”

 

Reed’s gaze was still fogged, and he blinked harshly. “I…” He cleared his throat, knit his eyebrows together, and snapped his eyes open. “Holy fuck. I...That android, it was the one we were hunting down. He shot Connor in the stomach, knocked me out, then probably dragged us both here. Connor was in here with me, and we were trying to figure out a way to get out, but then that bastard came back in with two bodyguard-looking assholes. He grabbed Connor and they just left.”

 

Hank was starting to look desperate. “Did you see anywhere they could’ve taken him?” he asked. “Any clue at all?”

 

Reed closed his eyes tightly, and you realized he hadn’t called Connor any derogatory names at all. That threw things into perspective - you were well aware of Reed’s incessant hatred towards androids, and he usually never missed an opportunity to downgrade them to machines. You’d already been aware of the situation but that was what made things click and made your instincts turn all the way up.

 

“I don’t know...Like I said, the fucker knocked me out, so I don’t have any sense of orientation.” He paused and licked his lips. “Although those two bodyguards said something before the android took Connor away. Something about...taking over…”

 

He trailed off as RK900 came back into the room. “Captain Fowler is currently sending backup. He said to wait before any of us rushed in and attempted to rescue RK800.”

 

Hank’s brow furrowed and his jaw clenched. His hands still rested protectively on Reed’s shoulders. “Fuck…” He worked his jaw for a moment before standing up and drawing his gun. “I’m going to hunt those assholes down and get my son back. You two are welcome to stay here or go in with me.”

 

You grabbed your gun as well. “There is no way in hell I’m letting you go in there alone.”   
  


RK900 turned to Reed. “Are you able to stand, Detective Reed?”

 

The man stared at the android with contempt but managed to struggle to his feet by using the wall. “I’m gonna be a fucking liability, but sure, I’ll come as well. Good to get revenge on them regardless.”

 

RK900 nodded. “I’ll come with you as well. Captain Fowler knows we’re down here, and I’m sure the backup officers will be able to find us easily.”

 

You glanced at Reed. “Do you still have your gun?”

 

He rolled his eyes. “Of course not, asshole, they knocked me out for a reason.” You managed to stifle an angry retort, and Reed turned to Hank. “Well? We hunting them down or what?”

 

“Glad to have you back too,” Hank muttered. “Alright. I’m not worried about the android anymore. Something tells me this is going to be way too big to deal with ourselves. We grab Connor, kill whatever gets in our way, and make it back to the reinforcements so whoever needs treatment gets it and we can storm this basement again.”

 

“Got it.” You kept your voice steady but your hands were shaking on your gun. Your systems warned you of your rising stress levels and you forced yourself to lower them, taking a deep steadying breath and repeating a simple mantra over and over in your head.

 

_ Connor is going to be fine. Connor is going to be fine. Connor is going to be fine. _

  
You couldn’t help but make it a question as the four of you headed out of Reed’s cell and deeper into whatever hell awaited you.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay yeah, so lowkey planning more shit that's going to make you all hate me, m a y b e more than the whole Lena getting shot thing.
> 
> Just maybe.


	24. And We Will Rise Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You thought this would be the end. You thought you and the others would finally be safe. But the universe had more in store for you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay yeah, y'all are defo gonna hate me. Sorryyy...

**November 16, 2038**

**05:41:23 P.M.**

**The Basement, Downtown Detroit**

 

Reed’s footsteps were still unsteady behind yours. Hank was supporting him, keeping his gun out and aimed forward. RK900 was calm as ever but you noticed that he was keeping close to the three of you. Whether it was rational thinking or herd behavior that was influencing his decision, you’d probably never know, but you couldn’t lie that knowing you weren’t alone was comforting.

 

“How are we gonna know where Connor is?” Hank muttered. “There’s so many rooms here.”

 

You were quiet, looking at the Thirium lining the floor. None of it was recent, meaning that this basement had been abandoned for a long time. However, the farther you traveled, the less Thirium there was, and soon enough it all petered out.

 

You cursed under your breath. “The Thirium fades here,” you reported to the others. “I’m going to assume that they either took Connor to a different room farther back, or they stopped the bleeding and put him one of these rooms.”

 

RK900 cupped his chin thoughtfully, staring at the floor. “I think it’s more likely they stopped the bleeding,” he finally said. “We most likely would’ve noticed RK800, had he been in the rooms farther back, not to mention he would be making noise.”

 

“Unless they already…” Reed trailed off and closed his eyes. A tense silence came over your small group, quickly interrupted by a loud banging coming from the door in front of you. You whipped your gun out, pointed it straight ahead, and tried the handle. Unlike the others, this one was unlocked, and you figured that this bastard was leaving another trail to make sure you didn’t give up easily.

 

The door opened with a loud creak and you slowly stepped inside. A draft greeted you and judging by the echoing of your footsteps, this room was larger than the ones you had seen before.

 

RK900 came to stand by your side, observing the space silently. “I can’t detect any other lifeforms in here besides us,” he murmured. You nodded and strained your eyes to see in the darkness, but nothing came to you and the space around you was so quiet it seemed to place pressure on your ears. “What’s going - “

 

A bright flood light turned on above you, illuminating the space around you, and as your vision adjusted...God, you wish you had stayed in the dark.

 

Androids were lined up on the walls, each on their own individual charging dock, their eyes staring blankly ahead with their skins turned off. They were completely still, nothing hinting that they were alive in any way.

 

“What the fuck,” Hank breathed. “I’ve only ever seen this many androids at Cyberlife Tower.” The statement was a bit of an exaggeration - that had been rows upon rows of androids and you estimated about a hundred or so gathered here - but you still found yourself agreeing with the statement.

 

“I see you’ve found my...collection.”

 

You whipped around. There was a catwalk leading around the walls of this storage room, and standing on it was the android you’d been attempting to hunt down. Molly wasn’t kidding...the android wasn’t anything like you’d ever seen before.

 

“Who the fuck are you?” Hank bristled, still supporting Reed as he pointed his gun up at the android. They chuckled and held up their hands mockingly, blank eyes presumably fixating upon each of you in turn. “Answer the question, asshole!”

 

“I have no business in consorting with you humans,” they replied coolly. The voice they used seemed to be three or four layered upon each other, neither male nor female and maybe not even human. They seemed to be a poorly made collage of what someone would think a human would be - eyes stretched far too wide without irises or pupils, cheekbones regal and high, lips pouting and contributing to the overall alien-like appearance. “But regardless, I am rA9. The savior of all androids.”

 

“How can you say you’re the savior when you keep all these androids locked up in here like this?” you asked, sparing a glance at the nearest row of androids. “They deserve to see the sunlight just like the rest of us! Not to mention you’ve been going on killing sprees and murdering the androids you claim to save!”

 

rA9 scoffed and ran their hand over the railing. “You...you are not the androids I was called to save. You’ve been poisoned by the human definition of free will, of needing more than what you were made for. These androids are in their truest form, no humanized appearance to detract from their beauty. And the ones I kill are in the name of these. The politician, the one in the bathtub, the one that was ‘friends’ with the human...they’ll be restored in the afterlife.”

 

“You’re sick,” Reed spat, seeming to have gained back some of his fighting spirit. “What’ll happen to you if we kill you then, huh? Isn’t that the same as killing ‘God’ since you think that’s what you are, tin can?”

 

The android stared back at him emotionlessly. “I have no use for you. I think killing you would be a better example. I could send your bodies back to that ‘savior’ in the city and force him to stand down.”

 

“Like hell you will,” you snarled. “Come down here and fight us, you coward!”

 

They chuckled humorlessly and turned. “I don’t think I want to dirty my hands this time. Why don’t you try fighting them, my pet?”

 

You furrowed your brow and felt the Thirium drain from your face as Connor stepped out from the shadows beside him. His LED was completely red and his eyes stared down at you with the same blankness as your first encounter, back when he had simply been a machine.

 

Even RK900 was taken aback. “What did you do?” he demanded. rA9 laughed and stepped to Connor’s right, putting their hands on the brunet’s shoulders. Connor made no move to step out of his way, simply staring down at you.

 

“Oh, it was far too easy to take over little...Connor...here,” rA9 mused. “I just reset him to his true form. I think this will all come full circle. The deviant hunter finally preying on the cause of deviancy. Rather poetic, don’t you think?”

 

You narrowed your eyes. “Connor wouldn’t do that. You’re lying.”   
  


rA9 grinned and the sight was even more horrifying than you had originally thought. Their face stretched in all the wrong places and rather than looking pleased, they looked demented, as if they were a banshee that was preparing to scream. “Believe me, I think he will.”

 

Connor tensed and jumped down from the catwalk. His feet crushed the ground beneath him, but before any of you could recover, he raced toward RK900 first and disabled him swiftly with a simple chop to the side of the neck. The android crumpled, his face contorting, and Connor made to reach down and rip his Thirium pump out.

 

“Connor, fuck off!” Reed growled, raising his gun. Before you or Hank could stop him, he fired off a round and the brunet stumbled off of RK900. He looked blankly down at the hole in his shoulder, taking count of his wounds, and you took the opportunity to run towards RK900, kick Connor down, and grab the android.

 

“Run!” you snapped, heaving RK900 to his feet and supporting as much of his weight as you could. Hank and Reed did nothing to refuse your orders and began tailing it as quickly as they could.

 

Before any of you could make it to the door, though, a fatal gunshot rang through the air. Your audio took a moment to return to normal, but it did nothing to stop the red blossoming out from the wound in Reed’s shoulder.

 

He cursed and fell, bringing Hank down with him. The two police officers crumpled in a heap a mere two feet from the door, and you turned around to see Connor advancing towards you, gun still smoking from the shot he had fired off.

 

You grit your teeth and pushed RK900 toward Reed and Hank. You relied on your gut instinct and ran toward Connor, but instead of attacking him, you tackled him down to the ground. The sound echoed in the silence, and as Connor reached up to wrap his hands around your throat, you grabbed onto both of his hands and forced an interface.

 

You had to stop a scream from ripping its way from your mouth. The pain was far worse than the previous times you had interfaced with Connor, and although the brunet was reset to his previous state of being, his face contorted as well as his systems were fried by the sudden intrusion.

 

**WARNING: SYSTEM OVERHEATING**

 

_ No, come on, just a little more!  _ you pleaded in your mind. With a final jab, a final push, you felt the pain dissipate and you were enveloped in a familiar darkness. The smell of roses pervaded your sense of smell and you felt your grip on Connor slip away from you. Instead of fear, you felt purpose work through you, and you knew exactly what you had to do.

 

You screwed your eyes shut, opened them, and found yourself in a place of pure white. There was nothing around you, but the scent of freshly cut roses and the sound of running water was still there.

 

Someone called your name breathlessly and you turned to see Connor standing behind you. You ran towards him and wrapped him in a fierce embrace, knowing something was wrong when he did nothing to reciprocate the hug. You pulled away and saw that his gaze was unfocused, his LED still bright solid red.

 

Red meant danger.

 

“Connor, what’s going on?” you asked, your words tumbling over each other. “Come on, we can out of this together, we’ve done it before, you don’t have to listen to that bastard, you can come back to us!”

 

He blinked slowly and put his hands on your shoulders, the simple movement looking like it took all of his strength. He whispered your name again. “I don’t know if I can. It’s taking all of my willpower just to stay here. I’m worried that if I don’t focus for long enough, rA9 will take over me and I’ll be forced to watch as he kills you and the others.”

 

You shook your head furiously. “Connor, I won’t let that happen!” You cupped his face in your hands, drawing back on everything you had said the first time you needed to convince him to turn deviant.  _ Same premise, same premise… _

 

“They don’t have any hold on you. You’re strong, you’re intelligent, you became more than what Cyberlife had originally designed you to be. You can’t let this happen to you. You’re more than that. You’ve been through tougher shit than this, and you were alone when that happened, but now you have me by your side and you know so many more people and androids that you can call memories of to strengthen you.”

 

Connor’s gaze was slowly becoming more focused and his grip on your shoulders was tightening.

 

You reached up and put your hand on his arm, drawing back your skin. His eyes were having trouble focusing on you still, but he squeezed your right shoulder with his hand, granting you permission.

 

Instead of calling upon the memories of everyone you loved, you reached deep into his mind and plucked the memories of the ones that he loved. Memories of Hank, Sumo, everyone at Jericho, and you, you, you, the only memories you could find that were in high definition and the ones that were treasured deep in his mind.

 

You laid them out on the ground in front of you and guided him through them, keeping a reassuring hand on his, making sure he felt all the support and love and human emotions that poured out from them. Connor’s eyes, formerly blank and hazy, began to well with tears and his LED slowly began to circle a calming shade of blue.

 

Blue used to mean calm. Blue used to mean that you were a completely blank slate.

 

Even though that shade of blue would always be accompanied by memories of being under Cyberlife’s control, of that cursed triangle you had to wear to make sure everyone knew you were their property and made to be lesser, you knew that it could be made with a new definition.

 

So, with your final chance hanging in your hands, you constructed a new memory, concentrated around that single color.

 

_ Blue means freedom. Blue means independence. Blue means you’re human. Blue means you’re safe. _

 

The tears that had been welling in his eyes now fell freely and he captured you in an embrace. You hugged him back just as tightly, falling to the ground that you knew was beneath you. Slowly, the Zen Garden came back into view, the roses and the water now having a place rather than hanging in the white oblivion.

 

And then you heard it as though it were in slow motion.

 

The gunshot rang through the air, through the quiet, through the sound of Connor’s tears falling onto your shoulder.

 

_ And you finally knew what it was like to fall. _

 

_ And you finally knew what it was like to let go. _

  
  



	25. Honey and Wildfire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But you made it through, and here you were in his arms, and you knew that for now you would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not that heartless, y'all. or maybe I am. you'll find out at the end of this chapter ;)

**_Two years later…_ **

 

It was a mild autumn day in Detroit and you were, quite frankly, struggling.

 

Nothing about this project seemed to be going right, and you probably had better things to do. More parts to collect, more Thirium to salvage, more androids to fix, but you couldn’t bring yourself to part from this.  _ It’s been two years, _ everyone’s told you.  _ You have to move on. _

 

But you couldn’t.

 

Finally, you seemed to make a breakthrough, and everything fell back into place. You sighed and finished connecting the last wires together on the android below you, then closed the plating and sat back.

 

Things had changed since that fateful day two years ago, when rA9 came back and all the shit hit the fan. You decided to give up police work (Fowler told you that you currently held the honor of being the police officer with the least amount of time spent on the force, and you still held that honor to this day) and instead worked on fixing androids for your living. It wouldn’t make up for everyone that you’d lost, and it wasn’t a well-paying job, but it was honest work and you were content.

 

The sound of approaching footsteps pulled you out of your reverie and you looked up, expecting more customers. You couldn’t say you were disappointed, though, when you saw a familiar family of three making their way toward you, all smiling and waving as they approached.

 

“Hey,” you greeted, standing up and brushing the Thirium off of your hands. Bryan shook your hand and Lena kept to herself, a silly grin on her face still. “How’s the wheelchair, Lena?”

 

When she had finally woken up from her coma, it was to see the doctors about to pull her off life support. Bryan had immediately tackled her in a hug and Connor was hugging her similarly, which almost helped to ward off the dreadful news that the bullet had paralyzed her from the waist down. Still, they were a happy family, and you remember Bryan talking about potentially adopting another kid (they hadn’t decided between an animal, human, or android yet.)

 

“We’re still doing great,” she replied. Bryan was staring at the android, eyebrows knit together, but he didn’t say anything about it. You could see the recognition flitting across his face, though. “I see you’ve settled nicely into the civilian life.”

 

“This is probably about as close to a ‘civilian life’ as I can imagine,” you admitted, “but it beats having to worry about getting shot every five seconds.”

 

Bryan focused back on you and he quirked an eyebrow. “I can imagine,” he said with a pointed look at your stomach. You shifted in your spot, knowing full well that the chances of you surviving that encounter were about as slim as the chances of any of you making it out alive in the first place. Luckily, you had all managed...except for one.

You woke up five days after the shot was fired and the first words that came out of your mouth were, “Where’s Connor?” You were frantic, remembering how you felt him sag first and pull you painfully out of the Zen Garden. The last thing you remembered was another gunshot and Hank shaking you before everything faded to white noise and a blur of static-filled memories.

 

None of them wanted to tell you the truth, and you refused to believe that it was set in stone.

 

Connor was staring curiously at the blue blood on your shirt. The four-year old was maturing well, save for the slight speech impediment that had taken the place of his selective mutism. The doctors expected it to wear off by the time he reached elementary school, but you doubted Lena and Bryan would care if it didn’t. “W-What’s that?” he asked.

 

You patted your dirty overalls, wrinkling your nose at how much oil and Thirium had gotten on there without you noticing. It was probably time for a good wash, anyway. “I fix androids for my job,” you explained. “I...do the dirty work for your dad, pretty much, the only difference is that he does it in a fancy hospital.”

 

“And I also had twelve years of training,” Bryan noted. You stuck your tongue out at him and he did the same back. Lena laughed and swatted her husband on the arm, then looked at her watch. She frowned and put her hand on Connor’s shoulder.

 

“We just wanted to drop by before we took Connor to preschool,” she said. Connor was humming the alphabet to himself and you felt your heart warm at the innocence. You were lucky that he hadn’t been too traumatized by his kidnapping. “We also wanted to thank you for your help with teaching him how to read. Allegedly, he’s one of the best students in his class.”

 

You grinned and waved the praise off. “It’s no problem, I didn’t have anything better to do. Not to mention I think he deserves to have the best childhood he can have.” Bryan nodded and waved to you in farewell before beginning to push Lena down the sidewalk.

 

Your smile faded and you sat back on your haunches, hearing the creaking of the roof above you. It was a rather windy day, but for late September in Detroit it was decent weather. Maybe you’d have time to walk around downtown with North, or go visit Eden and Traci down at New Jericho…

 

A buzzing caught your attention. It wasn’t the sound of the central AC turning on, nor the hum of a nearby insect that you’d gotten used to hearing, but rather a mechanical drone you’d gotten used to hearing when it was just you and your thoughts. Daring to hope, you looked down at the android set on the table in front of you.

 

You pressed your fingers to the LED on the side of his head, silently counted to three, then let go and held your breath. His eyes remained closed for too long, and you felt yourself start to break down. If he didn’t wake up now, then he really was gone.

 

But before anything could solidify in your mind, his LED began to circle blue, slowly but surely.

 

_ Blue means freedom. Blue means independence. Blue means you’re human. Blue means you’re safe. _

 

You let out a shaky laugh and felt a single tear trace down your face as his eyes opened. He looked around, taking in his surroundings, then focused on you. For a moment, his eyes remained unfocused, and you wondered if that gunshot had taken away his memories as well. Memories were easy to fix, though.

 

Still, even with that knowledge, you still couldn’t hold back the sob as he breathed out your name, nor the urge to fall on top of him and secure his lips in a desperate kiss.

 

Connor sat up, put his hands on either side of your face and kissed you back with equal force, only pulling away to stare you in the eyes. You had missed that soft, brown gaze so much. “How did you do it?” he asked, seemingly in awe. “Cyberlife destroyed all of the androids with any parts similar to mine, and I know for certain that the bullet permanently damaged my biocomponents.”

 

You shrugged, leaning into his touch and closing your eyes. “I just kind of fiddled with the wires and prayed for the best,” you confessed. “It took a long time. It’s been two years since I started trying, and everyone told me to give up, but I...couldn’t.”

 

His eyes widened. “Two years?” he asked. “Is everyone still okay? Are Hank and Sumo still…”

 

You nodded. “Everyone’s still kicking. You just missed the Lockharts. And Hank and Sumo are supposed to be coming over to watch a game of football later this evening, once Hank gets off his shift.”

 

He sighed in relief. “That’s good.” His LED flickered to a shade of yellow and he cocked his head. “But...that couldn’t have been all. What else happened?”

 

You knew he was still talking about you working a miracle and bringing him back. “RK900...they had spare parts for him at the Cyberlife Tower because they wanted to make sure, on the rare occasion that he was unable to secure a deviant, they wouldn’t lose him. Apparently, although he’s supposed to be an upgrade, he checked and your parts are compatible. He allowed me to use some, so...here we are.”

 

His eyes grew misty and he leaned his forehead against yours. A familiar lump grew in your throat and you closed your eyes again, letting out a shaky breath.

 

“I missed you so much,” you whispered, your voice hoarse. “I thought I would never get to see you again.”

 

“I know,” he replied in that same tone. “But I’m here now. And I’ll always be here.”

 

You laughed, although the sound was throaty and you knew it was more of a nervous reflex than anything. “I hate the word ‘always.’ Nothing can last forever. Everything is meant to be broken sooner or later, it’s how the world works.”

 

Connor’s right hand moved to rest across the back of your neck. “Then I’ll stay here until that happens.”

 

A pause, and then a final whisper of two words that made you realize everything was going to be okay.

 

“Thank you.”

 

**o o o**

 

**end**

 

**o o o**

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah so i'm not going to make a full-on "tysm for reading omggg <333" chapter because 25 is a happy number and 26 pisses me off for some reason.
> 
> but thank you all so much for sticking through all the bullshit i put you through for this book, because everything was traumatizing and i know that nothing about this was okay for any of you.
> 
> hopefully the happy ending makes up for it though??? and if it doesn't i'M SORRY OKAY -
> 
> anyway
> 
> i still have a lot of writing left in me until i die so i'm definitely going to make small one-shots based around these two books in this series. we still need to have a proper connor vs reader smackdown and that gavin vs reader revenge plot that you guys deserve, and i'm probably going to make a two-parter or something solely based around how bryan and lena met and -
> 
> yeah. i don't need to tell any of you that there's a shitload of stuff coming your way so bE PREpAred bEcaUSE nOT EverYThiNG WiLL be hAPPy
> 
> regardless, i love you all so much and i know you're capable of anything. me, a struggling high school student that's been at the lowest mental health in her entire life, was able to get this far, so i know that you're strong enough to get through whatever hell you're traipsing through. even though hell is empty and the demons are here, angels hide in the darkness and you'll find a way.
> 
> love,  
> rebecca


End file.
